One Last Chance
by rhuobhe26
Summary: A dying Ranma makes a wish that gives him the chance to make things right in his life, revisions underway and new chapters soon to follow.
1. A Dying Wish R

One Last Chance

Revised

A Dying Wish

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all its characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it, and even if I was trying too as this falls within the realm of parody there is some grey area about what I can and can't take from her Intellectual Property. None of this really matters however and most people don't even bother with reading disclaimers anyway.

AN: To avoid confusion the pronouns he and she will be used as appropriate, depending on which gender Ranma is at the time. I.E.: female: she/her, male: he/him.

I know I left this story alone for a long time, five years, and didn't update, but I have always intended on finishing the story. The reason for the hiatus was because I had become less than satisfied with the story and thought I had taken several cop outs. There were things I just didn't like about the story and wanted to change. Over time I made a note here and there about problems in the story as well as issues that should be addressed. After five years Ranma ½ is still my favorite anime and I have decided I need to finish what I started. I will mark chapters that have been revised with an R to help distinguish.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

_Signs_

**Scene Change/Flashback**

**Streets of Nerima**

"Ran.ma" Akane gasped, reaching for the pig tailed martial artist's hand with her own. She knew she was dieing. The demon that Happosai sent had been too powerful. The deep wound in her stomach had blood and bile seeping from it, staining the grass around her a dark red.

"A... ka... ne" Ranma choked out, blood seeping from his mouth. He was in no better shape then his fiancée. His lung had been pierced by a claw; he could no longer feel his legs and one eye was swollen shut, but somehow he managed to drag himself the rest of the way too her. Finally coming to rest beside her body the wounded boy put his arms around her.

"Akane, I'm. Not.. Not going to get. The chance to say this again. I. I... love you.. my. uncute tomboy." Akane turned her head and placed a kiss on Ranma's bloody lips, ignoring the coppery taste of his blood. She shed tears, tears of pain, tears of loss, and tears of joy.

"Ran. ma.. I love you too. my perverted. baka." For once Ranma didn't hold back his own tears. It wasn't necessary to appear manly now.

'What's mom going to do, have me kill myself.oh wait the demon beat her too it.' Ranma was deeply saddened, not because he was going to die, but because he hadn't been able to protect his Akane.

"I wish we could do this all over again." The couple tightened their grips around each other as darkness began to close in on their vision.

"So do I, but at least you know I love you." Ranma replied as they shared their last kiss.

"I love you too." A few moments later they lay still. Their bodies cooling in each other's arms, ignorant of the screams and cries from the nearby friends, fiancées, family, and rivals.

Happosai left the scene quickly, leaving the dead demon and his pupils where they lay. He had never meant for that to happen to Akane, she had been an accident. Ranma on the other hand had finally gotten what he deserved for stepping on and ripping a beautiful new bra that the old man had so selflessly rescued.

Distracted for a moment so he could pick up a new 'pretty' from the ground, he never even sensed the approaching projectiles. A thrown spatula took him in the arm, practically severing it while a bonbori smashing into his spine paralyzed him from the waist down. The old pervert cried out in pain and rolled over to see a large collection of martial artists gathered around him with murder in their eyes.

"What did you do that for, why can't you just leave a poor old man alone?" Happosai bawled.

His words and crocodile tears only seemed to make the group even angrier.

"That was just starters for what you did to Ranchan and Akane." Ukyo growled pulling her combat spatula out of its sheath.

"The ungrateful brat had it coming."

"Why Airen deserve that?" Shampoo asked, retrieving her weapon from the ground.

"He tore one of the centerpieces in my beautiful collection in two." The street glowed blue from the combined battle aura that was given off.

"And what did the fair maiden Akane do to incense your wrath, that she deserved such punishment?" Kuno queried, drawing a steel katana.

"Well she just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." The entire block was now covered in the expanded aura. Even Kasumi was contributing to it. Happosai was a tough old lecher, and the group made sure it took a long time for him to finally die.

With a little persuasion from Kuno and Nabiki, the Neriman police ruled the entire incident as a training accident. Long ago they had learned not to get involved with the strange circumstances in Nerima. Without any witnesses coming forwards to offer a different account this was accepted as the truth.

The amazons left shortly afterwards although no one saw them leave. Around her throat Cologne carried a strange amulet with her. If anyone listened carefully to it, they would hear what sounded like the screams of an old man.

Ukyo and Ryoga were both suffering from severe depression and began relying on each other for support through the difficult times ahead. They left quietly on a training trip one night, disappearing out of the city. A week later balls of blue energy flying into the sky before returning to earth could be seen in Okinawa, lighting up the night's sky. The two began dating shortly after having poured all their depression out in a brilliant light show.

Everything began to quiet down and go back to normal. Without Ranma and Akane though things just didn't seem to be nearly as interesting for anyone.

**Elsewhere**

"Ranma."

"Akane." The two embraced each other tightly.

"Umm Akane, is this the afterlife?"

"Not quite." An unfamiliar feminine voice replied. The two swung around to see a woman standing before them. She had strange blue tattoos on her face and was dressed in flowing robes.

"Who are you?" Ranma growled, moving between Akane and the new person.

"I am the goddess of the past. For your brave actions your wish has been granted." The goddess replied with peaceful smile.

"What wish?" asked Akane.

"For the two of you to have the chance to start over again."

"But won't all the same things just happen over again?" Akane asked the woman standing before them, staring suspiciously at this so-called goddess.

"Only if you let them happen the same way." The goddess replied, seemingly ignorant of their suspicion..

"So why are you doing this, I know Ranma has done plenty of brave things, but what have I done?" The goddess blushed slightly under Akane's scrutiny.

"Well it partly has to do with your joint defeat over Saffron." Akane quirked an eyebrow at her words while Ranma's eyes widened.

"And the other part." Ranma prompted.

"Well quite a collection of gods, spirits, and demons enjoy watching you two and decided they didn't want the entertainment to stop just yet," Now Akane wasn't the most trusting of people, in fact as Ranma could attest to from the beatings he's received she was far from trusting. So when Akane thought this goddess was still holding back she went with her instincts.

"Oh, just that reason, anything else?"

Clasping her hands in front of her and looking at her feet the goddess refused to meet here gaze.

"Well Ranma and you happen to be favored by several of the chaos gods and demons, so in exchange for not enacting an apocalypse that could destroy most of the world, you both will receive another chance." This time neither Ranma nor Akane had any response to the goddess, "Umm okay then, enjoy your re-life and don't mess it up this time by denying what you feel. You've given enough love gods and goddesses nervous breakdowns as is."

The mortal couple could only stare open-mouthed at the goddess, still not sure how to what to say. "Bye Bye then." The goddess said waving at the two.

Before either could respond they fell into blackness once again.

**Tendo Dojo**

"These friends of yours daddy?"

Rather then respond verbally, Soun jerked his head from one side to the other.

"Oh so a Panda just decided to drop by?" Nabiki yelled.

Said Panda pulled a red-haired girl off its shoulder and put her down facing the Soun and Nabiki.

"You wouldn't be?"

"Saotome Ranma, sorry bout this."

"Oh he is cute." Nabiki chipped in.

Soun threw his arms around Ranma pulling her into a bear hug, Ranma stiffened in response. Ahh just great, here we go again, this time let's see if I can avoid some of the mistakes I made last time I was here

Soun discovered much to his surprise, that there was a small physical discrepancy with the 'boy'. Actually it was more like two not so small abnormalities with the 'boy', abnormalities quite normal on a female. He released the 'boy' and stepped backwards. Nabiki looked from her father's impression of a board to Ranma. She stepped forwards and poked Ranma.

"Umm...could you stop that?"

Nabiki turned to her father. "He is a girl." Soun promptly fainted.

Yep, just like last time, oh well at least I know what to expect this time round. Ranma inwardly smirked.

AN:

Any comments are welcome, positive or negative.

Ranma ½ is a comedy, each character has flaws and issues that make them unique. Rather than try and fix those flaws I have decided to try and keep the characters as true to the original as possible. Something that I didn't quite manage as well as I wanted too in the original version of One Last Chance.

One of the reasons I couldn't continue the story any further as I wrote it was because the characters were drifting too far from their original versions to be recognizable anymore. I didn't like what I had done with them and it was ruining the story for me. Plus I was allowing gods and other characters too much say in a story that is meant to be about the original characters.

I like comedy, comedy is what attracted me to the series and comedy is what keeps me here. I enjoy reading dark fics, Waffs, and the like, but when it comes down to it I will chose comedy such as Black Dragon6's Guardian over other types any day.

Revision Notes:

This chapter merely had some spelling and grammar errors that I fixed. I changed some of the dialogue for ease of reading as well. The last time I wrote this story I was trying to go with a mixture of ambiguity, humor, and drama. This time around I am going to focus more on the humor and drama than on ambiguity.

Finally, my original formatting is no longer compliant with so I am using a new formatting method.


	2. The First Fight Twice R

One Last Chance ch.2

Revised

First Fight twice

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takashi, as to my knowledge no one has ever actually gotten sued for writing a Ranma ½ fanfic, even those that make Dojins and actually get money for it so the disclaimer is rather pointless, but here it is anyway.

AN: Ranma-chan denotes female, Ranma for male, this is used to help avoid confusion about what gender the aqua-transsexual happens to be during a scene. Much like he/she use.

"speech"

'Thoughts'

_signs _

**scene change/flashback **

**Summary**

In the last chapter Ranma and Akane were killed by a demon sent by Happosai. Ranma made a wish to have a second chance at life. When last chapter left off Ranma and Genma had just entered the Tendo home and Soun fainted at discovering he was a she.

**Tendo House**

'Oh yeah, Just like last time' Ranma-chan thought with a smirk. The last thing he remembered was talking to a goddess and then waking up over his father's shoulder.

'Well I guess this is as good a time as any to start, considering I have my memories, too bad she couldn't have restored my memories before I went swimming in a certain cursed pool or beat a certain Amazon.' He thought kneeling in front of Soun who was slowly regaining consciousness.

"This is all your fault daddy. You should have checked first."

"But Saotome said he had a son."

"Does this look like a son too you?" Nabiki growled reaching over and grabbing one of Ranma's breasts.

"I really wish you'd stop that."

"Leave him alone Nabiki. He's a guest." Ranma was thankful for the assistance, but wait a second.

'She used 'he' and 'him' even though she's only seen me as a girl, but wait could that mean?' Ranma smiled inwardly and prayed that she was right. Se felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Akane's smiling face.

"Hi, I'm Akane, want to be friends?" Ranma felt her heart sing at the beautiful smile. She smiled back at her and followed the youngest Tendo out to the dojo.

When they got into the dojo Akane turned back to face the redhead, "You practice Kenpo don't you?"

Ranma-chan nodded in response.

"Then why don't we have ourselves a little match?" Ranma nodded again. Akane dropped into a stance in front of her.

"Ready?" Akane asked with a smile.

"If you." Ranma cut himself off in shock, 'Wait a minute she was meant to say, 'Don't worry I won't hurt you.'' Ranma returned the smile.

Ranma-chan assumed the same relaxed stance she had used the first time she sparred with Akane.

Akane charged forwards and threw a punch. She telegraphed the move however and Ranma-chan leapt above it. She didn't jump high enough though and had to twist out of the way at the last second to avoid the punch.

Akane came at her again, this time letting loose a series of kicks and punches which backed Ranma-chan into a wall.

Akane's next punch broke through the dojo's wall. Ranma-chan's jump took her over Akane and onto the other side of her. Akane seemed a lot more skilled then Ranma remembered her to be at first.

The read head smiled in remembrance as she reached out to tap the other girl on the back of the head, only to find Akane's arm blocking the spot she was going to touch.

"You get the feeling we've done this before?" Akane asked with a smile as she turned around.

"Yeah almost like it happened one year, eleven months, fifteen days ago." He grinned even more as it was Akane's turn to go into shock.

"Ranma is that you?" She asked, her voice full of hope.

"Akane, it's me"

The two martial artists rushed forwards, meeting each other in an embrace.

"Oh Ranma, it is you." Akane sobbed into the other girl's shoulder

"Yes Akane, we have a second chance at life just like the goddess promised. This time, I'm not going to screw it up by waiting till it's too late to tell you."

Dropping onto one knee she held the stunned girl's hand between her own, "Akane Tendo, I love you, will you marry me?" Akane practically glowed at his words.

"I love you too Ranma Saotome, of course I'll marry you." They stayed there for a minute, just staring into each other's eyes. Akane pulled the kneeling girl up and wrapped her arms around the shorter girl, leaning her head against her shoulder.

"Umm Akane."

"Yes Ranma?"

"I'm still a girl you know." Akane squeezed the red haired girl tighter into herself.

"I don't care, boy or girl, you're still my baka."

"And you're my tomboy." Ranma-chan finished. The two separated.

"Ranma how long have you, well you know, been able to remember?" Akane asked

"I guess about the time I woke up on pop's shoulder, I'm not sure since I have all my memories, but I can't seem to remember remembering before that. If that makes any sense?"

"Yeah, it kind of does, it's the same way with me, only when I woke up this morning it was like waking up from a dream that you can remember, I remember yesterday like it was yesterday, but I also remember two years from now the same way. It's actually easier not to think about it too long or you'll get a headache."

"Well Akane, let's continue your lesson from where we left off before we. Well, you know." Ranma had a little trouble bringing himself to actually saying it now, for some reason. The two bowed to each other before assuming their own stances.

This was one thing that had changed shortly after Jusendo. Ranma's fear for Akane's life had overweighed his fear of hurting her and so had begun to train her for real. It had taken a while, but eventually he had fixed the mistakes that Soun had made while training his daughter. The most telling improvement was when Akane had learnt the Katchyuu Tenshin Amaguriken.

**Flash back/flash forwards/time travel is confusing, Tendo Dojo **

"Ok Akane, it's quite simple, all you have to do is concentrate and you can get it." Ranma offered helpfully. Akane just shot him a glare.

"So says the martial arts prodigy with an insufferable ego, jerk." Akane grumbled.

When he had told her he was going to train her in the Katchyuu Tenshin Amaguriken. She had been delighted, but after Tofu had been forced to treat her burns a few times she wasn't quite so enthusiastic anymore. 'Who knew training could hurt so much.'

The only reason she kept trying so hard was her insufferable fiancée kept egging her on. She wouldn't give the pervert the satisfaction. Although he had switched from chestnuts in a fire, to goldfish in a tank, he had said it would be easier this way.

She couldn't believe she had actually argued with him on the switch.

"So you just going to sit there and look at it or are you actually going to try the technique?" Ranma's voice interrupted her thoughts.

She wanted to mallet him so bad, but he hadn't let her until she learned the technique, she was really beginning to regret the promise she had made on that issue. The few times she had tried to mallet him he had taken it away from her and reminded her of the promise she had made. 'How was I to know it would take me so long to learn this, or that he was serious about not letting me hit him until I learned the technique.'

She yelled as her hands blurred, snatching the goldfish one by one out of the tank and putting them into a different one. When she finally stopped, her arms felt like they were going to fall off.

Next thing she knew, there was a towel in front of her, "Need this?" Ranma asked with a grin.

Akane was about to reach out and take it when she noticed her hands were still dry. She looked from one tank to another. One tank had no fish in it, while the other was full of them.

"Congratulations." Ranma said, reaching down and helping her to her feet. Akane looked him in the eyes; he didn't miss the malicious grin that spread across her face.

"So I've learned the technique now?" She asked sweetly.

"Yeah, took a bit longer then me, but you did learn it," he replied with his own cocky grin.

"You sure?"

"Positive," he replied becoming slightly nervous at her unwavering smile.

"Then you won't mind if I do this," she stated, pulling out mallet-sama. He quickly backed off.

Right as she was about to bring the mallet round to crush him she thought better of the idea.

"Come here Ranma." She cooed softly, dropping the mallet.

"Ummmm. I needta be somewhere else right now, sorry Kane." Ranma took off running. Akane was a moment behind him.

"Come back Ranma we need to celebrate." She yelled, "Let me demonstrate the technique for you."

"You really didn't need me, it was your accomplishment. Why doncha show your father?" He insisted, jumping onto the neighbor's roof. Akane followed her fleeing fiancée.

"Get back here or else I'll pound you into the ground Ranma……RANMA." She screamed chasing the scared youth.

**Present/past/this is going to be confusing, Tendo Dojo **

They had celebrated with some roof hopping, another technique that Ranma had helped Akane perfect, all around Nerima with Ranma leading and Akane following trying to 'demonstrate' her new technique to and on a fleeing Ranma. It was a very fond memory.

It had also been the last night they had shared together before Happosai's demon had killed the two of them.

Ranma adjusted his stance to start the lesson, but stopped before he could begin it.

"Ranma, what's wrong?" Akane asked, staring at her new/old fiancée who was standing before her and appeared to be twitching his limbs.

"Akane, I just realized something, it's this body, it feels strange."

"I thought you were used to your cursed form Ranma." The red head's eyes closed as she began throwing kicks and punches around the dojo, but there was something off about her technique, it looked hesitant and different, she suddenly snapped her eyes open and slapped a hand against her forehead.

"Akane, run through a warm up kata and you'll see what I mean." Akane cocked an eyebrow, but went into a simple kata.

She threw a punch, but it was slower than it should have been, while turning on a kick she almost fell over, it was like her center of gravity had moved. After clumsily finishing her form she stopped and looked at Ranma with confusion and a little fear in her eyes.

"S…Something's wrong with my body." If he hadn't experienced the confusion himself Ranma might have found Akane's expression amusing.

"It's not our bodies, it's our minds." Seeing Akane's confused look, Ranma continued his explanation. "Our minds are two years older than our bodies so we aren't used to something different from ourselves."

"Huh?", came her intelligent response.

"Think about it, these bodies are two years younger than what we're used too. We haven't trained them as much and so they are weaker, slower, and have less endurance. We still have all the knowledge we used to, but we aren't as capable of performing them." Akane looked crestfallen at this revelation.

"Does that mean I can no longer roof hop?"

"Nah, you could have done that any time, it just took you a while to build up enough confidence to try it, but enough talk, let's try out our new...um old bodies." They both dropped into stances, sparring slowly at first, but working up their speed as they went along. Ranma smiled.

"I think you're at about Shampoo's level when she arrived."

"Really?" Pictures of beating a certain Chinese bimbo with her own bonbori flashed through her head.

"Yeah, with a little bit of training you can beat her now, and you already know one trick she doesn't, the Katchyuu Tenshin Amaguriken."

"Can I perform it with this body though?"

"Sure, the technique is more about using your ki to enhance your punches and teaching the right way to throw the punches then it is about using the body's strength, it just takes training which we've both already been given you by me and me by Cologne. It won't be as effective with our old bodies since they aren't as physically fit, but we can still do it, and the better we train these bodies the more effective it becomes. All we've got to do is use the endurance, speed, and strength training now rather then later and we'll be better than we were before." Akane grinned evilly at this revelation, certain pictures of certain Chinese bimbos still dancing in her head.

She walked to the door, turned back and said, "I'm just glad you're a girl."

"Huh?" Ranma looked confused

"I'd really hate to loose to a boy." After saying this she walked out.

Ranma stared after her for a moment before bursting out in laughter. She was glad she didn't have any lines to say in response to that since she didn't know if she would be able to stop laughing long enough to get them out.

When she finished rolling around on the floor, she noticed Kasumi standing in the doorway looking at her.

"I thought you'd like to take a bath, I'm sure you must be all sweaty from your workout." Ranma was about to politely decline when an evil thought came to his mind.

"Why thank you Kasumi-san."

"Please Ranma-chan, just call me Kasumi."

Ranma took the loaned bathing supplies from Kasumi and headed for the furo.

**Tendo house, a little bit afterwards **

Later, Akane opened the door to the bathroom and stepped inside. She had waited longer this time to give Ranma a chance to get out of the furo rather then bump into him again. Looking around she couldn't see any of Ranma's clothes in the hamper so decided that he was gone.

Not this time around I guess. 'Too bad, this time I was actually hoping to get a better look at... bad Akane, bad Akane, he only just became your fiancé. Again for the first time in two years ago.' She pushed those thoughts out of her mind before they gave her a headache. She opened the door to the furo and stepped inside. What she saw made her drop her towel, showing more then she intended too.

Ranma from where he was sitting in the furo gave an appreciative whistle, "Ready for your massage?"

"Ranma no Hentai." Replied a blushing Akane, "Turn your head."

"Or else?" He asked with a cocky grin.

"It'll be imbedded in the wall and I'll call for daddy. Then I'll finish my demonstration of the technique you taught me." Ranma yelped and quickly complied with Akane's very reasonable demand while she covered herself and stepped into the furo facing away from him.

"Ok Ranma no Hentai, relax me." Ranma reached out, placing his hands on Akane's shoulders and began to massage her muscles; easing them after the heavy workout he gave her.

"If this was really two years ago, you'd have run off to find something to crush me with. What was it again a table or a stone statue?" It was amazing how much a simple declaration of love, and a marriage proposal that wasn't forced by family honor changed things between too people.

"I can't really remember."

The massages had been another thing that they'd started shortly after they began training together. Akane wasn't prepared for the intensity of the training and her muscles were causing her such pain that Ranma had carried her up to her room after she had collapsed the second night and massaged her body, easing the knots and strained muscles.

It had become like clockwork, Ranma and Akane would train and afterwards Akane would collapse face down onto her bed. Ranma would then sneak in and massage away her tension and strain, sneaking out so as not to alert the family as to their nightly ritual.

Ranma felt Akane loosening and falling asleep beneath his hands. He snuck one hand lower then usual and pinched her. She jumped up and turned around, looking down on him with a glare.

Ranma found his face right in front of Akane's nether regions. Akane looked at Ranma and saw his eyes were unfocused and staring straight ahead, she realized where his gaze was and sat back down instantly.

"Hentai." She said, punching him in the face.

"Cu..Cute tomboy." Ranma stuttered. Akane was about to hit him again when she thought over his words.

"What happened to Uncute tomboy, Ranma?" She noticed Ranma's eyes still weren't focused and slightly glazed as he answered her.

"Cute. very cute. never uncute." Akane smiled at his answer, when he was dazed he could actually be very nice. Maybe she should have flashed him like that sooner, 'Bad Girl, stop thinking like that.'

"Ok Ranma, what's your payment?" This was another part of their ritual. Akane wanted to pay back Ranma for the training session and massage, so she would let Ranma make a request, as long as it wasn't perverted.

The requests Ranma made would range from a simple hug too letting him sleep on a futon in her room, another thing he had been doing a lot since Jusendo.

'Although, maybe it would be fine now that they were engaged for a little perversion.' Akane's mind started to drift. 'I mean I never actually said nothing perverted, I just implied it rather emphatically.' Ranma mumbled something that Akane didn't quite hear, but did serve to bring her back to the here and now.

"What was that Ranma I didn't hear you?"

"I…I don't want Mikado to be my first kiss this time around." He told her blushing furiously. Akane was shocked, Ranma looked so meek as he made the request.

"Who do you want your first kiss to be with then, Ranma?" Akane asked, Ranma's blushed increased by a shade.

"The only person I ever want to kiss." Akane began to grin. It was like pulling teeth, but if he was going to make this request then he wasn't going to get off that easy, she was going to force him to ask her directly.

"And who would that be Ranma?"

"A Cute tomboy."

"What tomboy would that be then?"

"You know full well who I mean." He hissed, starting to get angry at how obtuse she was.

"Now who could it be?"

"Damn it Akane, you know I mean you."

She had had her fun, Ranma could only ever be pushed so far. "You have but to ask my dear fiancée."

"Damn it Kane, fine I want you to kiss me, you and only you, not Sanzenin, not Kuno, just you, there you happy?" His response came in the form of Akane's lips pressed against his own.

'YES, I'm Ranma's first kiss.' Akane's mind sung happily, 'And If I have my way the only one who kisses him.'

'YES, Akane's my first kiss.' Ranma's mind yelled in joy, 'and hopefully the only one who kisses me.'

They held the kiss for a minute before separating.

"Very" Akane purred in response to Ranma's question, before stepping out and into the changing room. Ranma could only sit there for several minutes before mumbling the one word that could express his feelings.

"WOW."

Before getting out of the furo, toweling off, and getting his clothes from out of the closet where he'd hidden them. Somehow Ranma had a feeling things were going to go a lot better this time around.

TBC, end of chapter 2

AN: As for not going to into the beginning bit where Ranma arrives, in more detail, let's face it this has been done so many times that it really isn't necessary, if you don't know what happens, read the manga, watch the anime, or read any one of dozens of other fanfics that go into it. So unless I actually wrote in a change just assume everything that happened in the actual series happened there too.

The comment about table or stone sculpture is a reference to the difference between the Manga, in which Akane runs outside and grabs a stone object, and Anime, where Akane runs into the living room and grabs the table.

The story will have elements from both the manga and the anime.

As for Ranma speaking more fluently then before, this has two reasons, in the Manga before things went to hell, Ranma spoke pretty well. The second reason is that since Ranma has been living among normal (a relative expression) people for nearly two years, he was able to get rid of some of his less favorable habits. Don't worry in times of stress he will fall back into his bad habits.

Once again please R/R, I enjoy reading the commentary, it helps a surprisingly large amount.

Revision Notes: Once again not many changes here, mostly spelling and grammatical errors or issues to fix with this chapter.

As for the violence from Akane and the insults from Ranma, those will be increased a bit from the old version. It's part of who the characters are and more importantly how they show their feelings for others. Making Akane a pacifist and Ranma polite is only one or two steps shy of rewriting everything about the series.

As I revise the story one of the things I am doing is carefully reading over the reviews left for each chapter. I appreciate comments from TerraEpon, Vixen2, Cupid's Bride, and all the other reviewers on everything from content to plot to spelling and grammar, even comments that think I am doing a horrible job or just copying I read and weigh the reviewer's opinion. I am in fact Scottish, but have spent a good portion of my life in the American education system and as such regularly mix the two written languages. Such as the spellings of honour, armour, and other words. For convenience of reading one of the things I will do as I go through is make sure all the words are the Americanized version. Hopefully this will make the story less awkward to read.

-rhuobhe26


	3. Of Fiancees and Sisters R

One Last Chance ch.3

Revised

Of Fiancées and Sisters

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it, and even if I was I wouldn't be dumb enough to actually say I was.

AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames; I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

**Scene change/flashback**

_Signs_

**Summary**

Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Akane and Ranma confessed their feelings for each other and shared their first kiss. Now on with the story.

**Tendo House**

"Are you that girl from before?" Nabiki asked. They were all sitting in the living room.

"Ahh yes, where to begin." Genma reached over to grab his son, only to have his hands intercepted and sent flying into the koi pond.

"Oh my own father, so humiliating, so humiliating to his own son," Nabiki, Kasumi, and Soun all stared at the koi pond, while Akane tried not to laugh at Ranma's role reversal.

"It happened two weeks ago in China at the cursed training grounds of a place called Jusenkyo." Ranma began.

**Flashback, a real flashback this time not a confusing back or forwards flash**

Of course we've all seen this bit written, drawn, or animated more times than most care to remember, so I think we will skip this little bit of the story. For those of you who don't know what happens, read the manga, watch the anime, or take a pretty good guess as to what happens.

**End flashback, Tendo House  
**

"And so thanks to this idiot here we're cursed. Cold water activates the curse while hot water reverses it." Soun moved over to pat Ranma on the back.

"No sweat. Your problem isn't so terrible after all!" Soun says cheerily, patting Ranma on the back.

"How so?" Ranma replied. Akane saw that Ranma was trying very hard to suppress a grin.

"My daughter Kasumi, nineteen, and Nabiki, seventeen, and Akane, sixteen. Pick the one you want and she's your fiancée." Nabiki and Kasumi were behind Akane in an instant at their father's words.

"Oh he wants Akane," Kasumi chirped.

"Oh yeah he definitely wants Akane." Akane remained quiet knowing full well whom Ranma would choose, not that it mattered anyway.

"May I talk to the three of you upstairs privately," he asked.

"Of course," Kasumi replied, standing up and walking out of the room, heading for the stairs. Nabiki, Akane, and Ranma followed. When they got upstairs they all went into Nabiki's room.

"Umm could you give Akane and I just a second please?" Ranma asked, pulling Akane out of the room and shutting the door, surprising the other two sisters.

"Hmm, looks like he and our little sister come to an agreement already," Nabiki smirked.

"Oh my."

On the other side of the door, Akane was fuming. "What's the big idea, why didn't you just choose me?"

"Because of your sisters."

"What about them?" Akane asked through clenched teeth. 'If he decided to try for one of my sisters after what he told me, I'm going to kill him.' Her hand clenched into a fist as she got ready to beat some sense into her fiancé.

"Well I'm pretty sure our fathers are too clueless to notice what would be a sudden change in our behavior, not that they'd care even if they did if it meant uniting the schools, but I'm pretty sure your sisters would notice the change in you." Akane gasped, she hadn't thought of that.

"It's not very likely I would suddenly go from hating all boys to being happily engaged at the drop of a hat. So what should we do?"

"I think we should tell them the truth." He held up his hand forestalling her next comment.

"Think about it, who can keep our parents in line like Kasumi, and then there's Nabiki. She's one of the reasons it was so hard for us back then. If we have her on our side, it might just work out a bit better this time round." Akane nodded.

"I'm not so sure about that, I think I have a better idea, just follow my lead ok." They opened the door and stepped inside, Ranma following Akane.

"OK, spill it Saotome, who do you choose and why did you want to talk to us?"

"Chill Nabiki, he chooses me so calm down." Akane says, waving her sister to silence.

"You're taking this pretty well sis, I thought you hated guys."

"I did, but things change."

Kasumi and Nabiki looked in shock from Akane to Ranma and back. 'Wow, if he got Akane over her thing with boys in a couple of hours he must be something, maybe we should give the engagement a try.'

"That's nice do you know each other from before now?" Nabiki looked at her older sister in shock, other thoughts had been in her mind.

"Yes we do." She swung her head back to look at Ranma.

"Ok, spill, it's obvious you're hiding something."

Ranma sighed, might as go with the straightforward approach. Outside of battle he'd never been much for subtlety anyway.

"Ranma and I have known each other for a while now." Nabiki raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, then how come we've never met him before. I thought you were on a training trip for the last few years." Nabiki asked skeptically, she'd always been very good at reading people and these two were hiding something.

"Oh my Akane, it's not proper to keep a boyfriend hidden for so long." Kasumi chided in a motherly fashion.

Akane sighed at her older sisters' words.

"I know Kasumi, but think of what would have happened if Kuno had found out that there was some guy out there that I cared about. He would have started searching the world to kill him. He'd probably say that Ranma here was some kind of sorcerer and that he had enslaved me."

Everyone paused for a moment to consider this, Nabiki had to grudgingly admit that what her sister said sounded exactly like the kind of hair brained logic that Kuno would come up with. Ranma and Akane didn't have to try very hard having plenty of experience dealing with the delusional samurai.

"Alright then, that's a really good reason why you didn't tell anyone, but it still doesn't answer my original question, if Ranma-kun here has been off on a training trip for the last several years then how do you know him?" Nabiki pressed, 'something doesn't feel right here, but what is it?'

"Well I used to live around here when I was younger, my mother and pops had a place not too far from here." Ranma provided, thankfully this was all the truth, otherwise he was sure that his horrible poker face would have given him away.

"Oh my, little Ranma-chan, it really is you." Kasumi smiled, a real smile, not the vacant expression that she usually wore.

"You know him?" the younger two sisters asked, both honestly surprised.

'She knows him,' Nabiki thought to herself, 'how would Kasumi know someone so much younger than herself?'

'She knows him,' Akane questioned silently panicking, 'when and how, and why did she never say anything when he came last time?'

"Oh yes, back when Mother was alive," a wistful look passed over Kasumi's face, "she'd take the three of us to a park nearby and watch us play. Ranma used to be there and you two would play together all the time. Ranma-kun would poke you or call you a name and you would chase him around the park trying to hit him with a little plastic hammer until you both tired yourselves out. I never would have even thought of it if you hadn't mentioned living so close."

Thankfully for the young couple the two older Tendo sisters were lost in their own thoughts and never noticed the surprised expressions on their faces.

'We've known each other for that long.' Akane thought, 'I never realized it before.'

"But you were so young Akane, I'm surprised you and Ranma-kun remember that far back."

"Well Kasumi, some things just stay with you over the years," chuckled Ranma, looking anything but innocent.

"So this is what you want little sister? Do you truly want this?" Nabiki asked, moving her eyes from her sister to Ranma and back. "You really want to be engaged to him?"

In response to her sister's question, Akane smiled and leaned against the pig-tailed martial artist behind her. He in turn, wrapped his arms around her. The other two Tendos were shocked by their youngest sister's open display of affection.

"No Nabiki, I don't want to just be engaged to him. One day I want to be married to him."

"Oh my Akane, this is so sudden."

"Shhh Sis," Nabiki scolded, pulling her older sister close, "do you really want to be engaged to him?"

"Oh no, he's far too young for me."

"Then lets allow the two of them to do this on their own," whispered the middle Tendo, "we can always step in if we need to, but for now let's just let them find their own way."

"Alright Nabiki, if you think it's for the best."

"I do," leaning back she said to the couple, "Well Akane you have my support. You can be his fiancé and we won't object to this."

This caused the young pair to release a breath that neither had realized they had been holding. The approval of Akane's sisters would make everything a lot easier

"You have my support in this too, just don't do anything improper before you two marry, OK."

Akane flushed beet red at her sister's implications.

"KASUMI!!!"

"Come on Akane, let's go break our choice to your father and my old man," Ranma said, dragging a still blushing Akane with him as he went.

No sooner had they set foot into the living room than Ranma was immediately confronted by his father.

"So boy, made your decision yet?" Ranma sighed at his father.

"Yeah pops, WE have," He stated, clearly putting a lot of emphasis into the 'we' part.

"So son, who did you pick?"

"Sorry Mr. Tendo, I can't choose any of them since I'm already engaged."

"WHAT?" the four Tendos yelled.

Genma merely paled. 'Oh No, does the boy actually remember one of those engagements I made. This could cause trouble who is it, the Ukyo girl or one of the others.'

"Boy who is this girl you're engaged to?" his father growled, 'I can't let all my hard work go down the drain just because the boy happens to remember one measly promise.'

Ranma was using the soul of ice to keep from cracking up then and there.

"Pops, let me introduce you to my fiancée, Akane Tendo." Ranma took Akane's hand and bowed to his father, but not very deeply. "With your approval of course Mr. Tendo."

Soun just nodded in shock before saying, "of course son you have my permission to marry my daughter."

"So that means you support Ranma's proposal and Akane's acceptance?" Nabiki asked, a mischievous gleam in her eye.

"Of course we can have the marriage ready by tomorrow." Soun beamed proudly, whipping out his victory fans.

"But father, isn't it customary to wait at least a week to a year minimum after a couple meet for an arranged marriage?" Kasumi pointed out.

"That's ok Kasumi, there's no need to wait so long since they both agree to the marriage." Soun countered, 'I thought we'd have to fight them tooth and nail to get them to accept this, we figured it would take at least a year just to get them to accept the engagement.'

"You're right dad there's no need for the regular wait period." Akane agreed.

"See there, just let me call the minister and we can." Soun was cut off by Akane.

"Since this isn't an arranged marriage Ranma and I can take as long as we want."

"WHAT?" Genma and Soun yelled.

"Ranma proposed to me before you asked him to choose, therefore this isn't an arranged marriage. Sorry dad, but I want to plan my own wedding and it'll take me longer than a week. We will do things at Ranma and my pace, understand?"

Soun began to shrink away from his daughters as they teamed up against him.

"But the schools must be combined," he tried to argue. Soun looked over to his 'best friend' for support, all he saw was a panda playing with a beach ball.

"They will be joined, but since you and pops accepted my proposal and engagement already you let us take it out of the families' hands and left it up to Akane and I instead." Ranma's voice was calm and almost friendly, but there was a certain edge of steel to it.

"Of course you could always make them break their personal engagement and reinstate the family's in its place." Soun relaxed.

"That's true enough, eh Saotome?" Genma had changed himself back as soon as things began to go his way.

"Definitely Tendo."

"Of course that means I'll have to speed up my bridal training. I'll cook 'EVERY' meal from now on." Akane put a lot of stress behind the word every. Genma couldn't understand why everyone else in the room had gone pale.

"I don't see any prob-," Genma was forcefully cut off when Soun, Nabiki, and even Kasumi placed their hands over his mouth. Thankfully everyone was to busy with Genma to see that his son had paled as well.

"That's fine Akane, I'm sure you and your fiancée can handle it, if you need our help don't hesitate to ask." Her father placated.

"But Tendo, the schools," Genma was cut off again, this time by Soun's withering glare.

"I'll explain later, but suffice to say that I want to live long enough to see the schools joined." Soun whispered into his ear. "Besides, just by having them agree to be married the plan is already a year ahead of schedule. We have plenty of time left."

Genma nodded in grudging agreement. 'The plan is already ahead of schedule after all, besides I can work on the boy, I'm sure he'll listen to my sage advice and marry the girl.'

Akane was rather upset, just because they had the hazmat team's number memorized, knew all the operators at the poison control center on a first name basis, and even because it had taken two teams from the animal control center to apprehend and put down a casserole when it had tried to take a bite out of Kuno, didn't mean she wasn't getting better.

Before they died Ranma had actually begun to enjoy her curry. Even though everyone else thought it was a little too spicy at least he ate it. This was in no small part due to the phoenix pill and soul of ice, Ranma was able to withstand the sheer spiciness that would otherwise boil blood, of course Akane didn't need to know this fact.

"Calm down Akane, we got them to back off, now we can deal with the other problems as they come." Ranma whispered into her ear.

He was right, she knew he was right, but she was still angry.

"Ranma. Dojo. NOW." She growled heading to the dojo, a blue glow surrounding her body. Ranma followed silently, noticing her battle aura expand and contract as she tried to calm down, but not quite succeeding at the task.

When they got into the dojo, Akane just stood there trying to control her breathing. Taking a risk Ranma put his hand on her shoulder. She spun around at his touch.

Ranma reflexively closed his eyes and raised his arms in warding.

"I'm not going to hit you Ranma."

"Promise?"

"Yes."

He lowered his arms to see Akane standing in front of him with a hurt expression.

"Am I really that bad?"

"Huh?" There were so many painful answers, a few safe answers, and little else he could say to that question.

"Cooking and my temper, am I really that bad?"

"Yeah Akane you are. You were getting better; if you could learn some control then you'd be much better, but it has got to be something you want, it can't be something you're forced into."

Ranma remembered trying to teach Akane using some of the same incentives his father used. He had spent several nights in Dr. Tofu's clinic recovering from his attempts and he wasn't quite ready to repeat the experience.

"As for cooking, you're getting better at it, you just need to keep practicing."

"Thanks Ranma, I don't know if I can do this though. I don't know if I can go through all the fiancées, rivals, kidnappings, and other crazy things that happen. I came so close to loosing you several times, I don't know if I can go through that again. I lost you once before, I know I couldn't take it if I lost you again."

Akane was practically crying. She was barely able to hold back the tears. Seeing this Ranma did something he wouldn't have dared try before he died.

After all dieing changes a person's outlook on life. While no one else can corroborate this since as far as they were aware Ranma and Akane were the only people to go through this. So for the sake of argument we'll let Ranma get away with it,

He gathered Akane into his arms, holding her to his chest. She responded by grabbing onto him and crying into his shirt.

"Don't worry Akane, this time we know what's coming and when it's coming. We'll face it together and we'll beat it." Akane favored him with a smile for his kind words.

"Really?" He in turn returned her smile.

"Really," he assured her.

**Somewhere else**

"Oh no my dears, that just isn't going to happen. We didn't go through all the trouble of rescuing you, just to let things get boring. You might be Loki's favored, but that doesn't mean we're going to let you get away with no entertainment." A figure that sat watching the two chuckled to itself.

"Are you sure interfering would be a good idea. I mean after all the trouble they got into last time do we really need to make it worse on them. Even the lord and lady of battle keep their interventions to a minimum where these two are involved. You know how easy to provoke the chaos lot are."

"Of course I'm sure, now did you get it?"

The second figure pulled out a folder from its robes and handed it to the first. The recipient looked at the folder in its hand. The folder was easily several inches thick.

"This is a list of all the women his father engaged him too?"

"Not quite."

"What do you mean, not quite, what else is in here?"

"Actually all of the people in that file are supposed fiancées."

"But.-" prompted the first figure.

"That is only A-G." The first figure face faulted.

"Where are the other files?"

The other smiled and began producing more files of similar size.

"You know I can see why the love gods take such pride in this kid, but still hate the mention of him."

TBC, the end of chapter 3

AN: Well that's another chapter completed in the story. I really enjoy the reviews and am very pleased with the number of reviews it has received so far. This has given me even more incentive to get more chapters out faster. Thank you for all the criticism I have received as well, it is a big help and I fixed some grammatical errors in chapter 2 thanks to one astute readers observations.

Don't worry, the list of characters will expand come next chapter. I'm sure many of you are in anticipation over the first day of school and Kuno, two of the issues I will be addressing in the next chapter.

This fic has been compared with Lord Archive's "Second Chances" along with several other fan fictions. I in no way intend to copy any of these stories. All these stories have more or less the same method and means for going back, generally involving the deaths of one or more of the cast. My story also has these things and as this story goes on you will see more and more differences between my fic and the others, I would say more, but it will be a lot more enjoyable to let you see what I mean for yourself.

This fic is going to have a lot of WAFF in it, that is unavoidable, I am going to try and keep this from being a "senseless Akane/Ranma romance" as one reviewer so aptly stated. There is a plot that will become more and more obvious besides the whole. 'Let's see if we can make it past the two year mark this time.'

I enjoy reading the review so keep them coming. If you want to talk to me and have me respond, please e-mail me at and state you want me to respond. I might not otherwise.

Thank you, and enjoy the fic.

Revision Notes:

The largest change in this chapter is that Nabiki and Kasumi were originally told that Ranma and Akane came from the future. I always felt this was a bit of a cop out on my part. The more people who knew about it the easier writing the story would be, however this also limited certain things that could be done with the characters. Over the next few chapters I came to regret having the two of them in on the whole thing. I originally intended that neither of them found out and I am going with that feeling.

From this point on the changes from the original and the revision will become more and more obvious.

Another change I am making is that originally I ended every chapter with the two mysterious figures and having them laugh. Reading through it and having written it I find this was way too forced and expected. It also served to make the two seem like nothing more than comic relief without actually adding anything too the story, while the two will have a role to play I am going to stop ending every chapter with the two of them laughing. Running gags only work if done properly, this one was not.

There was another Ranma 1/2 story I was working on that used several gods and goddesses as main and secondary characters and this story started to combine both fics together. Reading back through I see that my original ideas for One Last Chance started looking more and more like my other story. With each chapter I wrote the fact that they had traveled through time seemed less and less important. This was one of the reasons I stopped, because it was a great disservice to both stories to be lumped together like I had done as they both were pretty good as stand alone tales. As such while divine beings will still play a role, I do not wish this to turn into a Hercules or Xena style story. Ranma and Akane have more than enough on their plates already without a gaggle of Olympians throwing much more.


	4. Doctors and Delusions R

One Last Chance ch.4

Revised

Doctors and Delusions

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all its characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.

AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames; although if you're going to leave one it really doesn't matter, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

**Scene change/flashback**

_Signs_

Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance at life and love. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Akane and Ranma told Akane's older sisters that they had met previously and knew each other from earlier on in life. Kasumi remembered that Akane and Ranma used to play in a park when they were little. After getting the support of the older Tendo sisters they forced their parents into agreeing to leave them alone. Now on with the story.

**The streets of Nerima**

"You know Ranma as much as things change some are going to stay the same." Akane told Ranma as they walked to school.

"Like wha-," he was cut off as the old lady hit him with a ladle full of water. "Never mind, I see what you mean." He grumbled as they headed for Dr. Tofu's clinic as if by unspoken agreement.

The morning had been a typical one so far. Genma had woken Ranma by tossing him out the window and towards the Koi pond. He hadn't expected Ranma to catch the window frame, pull himself back in and return the favor.

The spar lasted several minutes. Ranma could have finished faster if he had wanted to, but he was still testing out his old body. Unused to the way it worked and responded to his control he savored the chance to improve. When he finished Akane had been waiting for him with a kettle, smile, and a quick kiss.

Ranma forced himself to act surprised at breakfast when his father told him about school, Ranma hadn't even bothered arguing. Partly because he knew it would do no good and partly because it was an excellent way to be close to Akane without having their fathers interfering.

Waiting in front of the clinic for Akane, he let his senses extend, actively searching for the good doctor. Ranma felt him right behind him and turned round, catching Betty's hand and shaking it.

Dr. Tofu was flabbergasted, whoever this girl was, either she was a very good martial artist, or he had done something wrong when masking his presence. He was a hundred percent sure that he had correctly masked his presence, so that only left on option.

"Hi I'm Ranma Saotome, you must be Dr. Tofu." The red head girl bowed before the flustered doctor.

"Ranma, here's the water, oh good morning Tofu-sensei."

Tofu was thankful for the momentary distraction and took advantage of it so as to better compose himself.

"Ah good morning Akane-chan, is this a friend of yours?"

"Actually Doctor," Ranma-chan poured the kettle over her head, enacting the change; "I'm her fiancée."

Tofu was astonished at seeing the redhead change; he was even more astonished that Akane wasn't vehemently denying the engagement.

"We need to get going Ranma or we'll be late."

She walked off, reaching over and shutting Tofu's jaw as she walked past him. Ranma in turn shut Betty's jaw as he went past. The two ran off leaving the doctor and his skeleton standing there.

"Man, only time I've ever seen Tofu space out so badly is when Kasumi's around."

Ranma chuckled, beside him Akane giggled.

"Yeah, I don't know which he found more shocking, the curse or the fact I never denied our engagement."

"Probably a combination of both, he didn't respond to either of them as badly last time. I have a feeling if Kasumi had been there the good doctor would have had a heart attack."

The two continued to banter back and forth until they saw the gates of Furinkan.

"You sure you want to do this Ranma?" she asked.

"Positive, even if the mob gives up we'd still have to deal with Kuno. This is the best way to stop him, short of killing him or having him committed." Both of which were ideas they had seriously toyed with for a while, before deciding to go with a new plan.

"There's still time to get the papers, I hear the psychiatric ward of Nerima is very nice." She pleaded with him, only half joking.

"Trust me; I've saved you enough to earn that haven't I?"

"Well technically you haven't saved me at all, but just this once." She gave him a smile to show she was joking and a quick kiss on the cheek for good luck.

Akane stopped outside the gates, just out of sight from the Hentai horde. Ranma took a breath and stepped around the wall into the yard. The Hentai horde stared at him strangely; the lookout had said Akane and someone else were coming. The horde eyed the new kid warily.

"Who is responsible for this travesty against Akane Tendo?"

Ranma's voice rolled over the crowd. He felt somewhat stupid pulling a Kuno like this, but Nabiki had stayed up late with Akane and him the previous night, working on what to say, for a price of course. Kuno stepped out from behind a tree where he had been waiting.

"And who are you too question such a noble decree that thee would deem a travesty issued forth from the house of Kuno?"

Ranma didn't even bother speaking, knowing he'd just be cut off.

"But is it not customary to give ones own name first. Very well, I am Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen, junior class group F, also known as the blue thunder of Furinkan high."

Lightening crashed in the background as Kuno raised his boken. Taking his cue Ranma responded in kind.

"I am Ranma Saotome, age sixteen, sophomore of no group yet; heir to the Saotome School of anything goes martial arts.

"Do you seek to join our noble quest for the privilege to date Akane Tendo then?"

Ranma was impressed, but also a little worried at just how well Nabiki knew and could predict how Kuno was going to act.

"No, I am here to issue an open challenge, for the hounding and harassment of Akane Tendo, either give up on her or face me in combat, should you loose you will stop this and give up on her. Should you loose you may not reissue a challenge for her. Besides there are so many other cute girls here that would welcome your attention."

The girls watching from the school applauded and cheered. The new kid was cute, even if he was about to get beaten, maybe they could nurture him back to health.

"What gives one such as you the right to issue such a challenge?" Kuno growled.

"My challenge is more valid then your own as Akane and her family gave me permission and have selected me as defender of her honor and her champion."

Kuno's face darkened even more upon hearing this injustice.

"Nay, that can not be so for I am already such."

Ranma was kind of spooked now, except for some slight semantic differences it was like Nabiki had scripted the entire affair.

"Then surely you hold the approval and consent of her family in a form such as this." As he spoke, he removed a sheet of paper and unfolded it.

Written upon the paper were the words of a family agreement in a flowery language that Kuno would understand, hopefully, along with the Tendo and Saotome family crests, Ranma, Akane, Soun, and Genma's signatures. Needless to say it turned out to be no surprise that Nabiki happened to be a registered notary.

Kuno shook with rage and charged the offending cur, some of the horde charged with him, mostly the Kendo team, but the majority either went inside or hung back to watch.

The fights was short and brutal, rather then play around with Kuno like he usually did, Ranma instead reached out and snapped Kuno's boken in two before darting away from a stunned Kuno. The rest of the group was taken care of in a matter of moments; Ranma was a little bit gentler with them. Kuno just stood there staring straight ahead as others fell around him.

Akane walked through the gates as the last pervert fell. Those of the horde that had held back took a step towards them, but a glance from Ranma made them think better of it.

"Bye Kuno, take care," Ranma called over his shoulder, walking into school after the rest of the horde, Akane at his side.

"You will refer to me as Sempai," Kuno managed to utter before collapsing.

A few moments after he fell it began to rain. Unnoticed by everyone, a panda holding a kettle appeared, looked around, and with a shrug, left the scene, heading back to a certain house to play a game of shogi with an old friend.

"Class, this is Ranma Saotome, he is a new student whose been studying in China, let's give a big Nihao to him. Since you already know her, why don't you sit next to Miss Tendo."

"Yes Sensei," Ranma replied, heading for his desk, doing his best to ignore the appraising looks he was getting from the girls as he walked by.

When he got to his desk there were four sheets of folded paper already waiting for him. He opened the first one

_Hey that was cool the way you took out Kuno today, want to be friends? _It was signed Daisuke and Hiroshi.

Ranma turned to where the pair sat and held up the note, quirking an eyebrow. They were watching him and nodded. Ranma nodded back, smiling and prompting grins from the two.

The other two notes were from girls saying hi and asking a few rather personal questions, a couple having to do with his namesake even. The final one was in Akane's handwriting and was very simple in its message, _Well?_

He wrote on it in reply, _we forgot something._

He passed the note to her with a flick of his wrist. She caught it and after writing something sent it back.

_What?_

_Remember how Kuno learnt of the engagement last time?_

Akane looked in horror at the note.

_We forgot to pay her off not to tell, didn't we?_

"Absolutely not, I refuse to allow it."

Ranma nodded sadly and Akane put her head on her desk and sighed. Kuno burst in the door and yelled towards Ranma, "foul wretch, I shall never recognize your engagement to Akane Tendo."

The entire class burst into action upon hearing Kuno's words, yelling questions and crowding around Akane and Ranma. The former just kept her head down while the latter was banging his head on the desk.

"Foul Knave, I smite thee." Kuno cut Ranma's desk in two as Ranma leapt over Kuno and headed into the hall.

"Come on Kuno, let's take this outside."

He jumped out a window, Kuno following right behind him.

"We're on the third floor."

"Good thing there's a pool down there."

'Oh no, we were hoping to avoid this,' Akane thought to herself.

The class rushed to look out the window, as the first students got to the window that the two jumped out of, Ranma pulled himself back inside.

"Um, didn't you just jump out?" one student asked.

"Yeah, but I caught the window ledge before I went too far."

"What about Kuno?"

Ranma smirked.

"He went too far."

Most of the students caught the double meaning in the new kid's words. Unfortunately one student remembered part of Kuno's ranting.

"Are you two really engaged?"

The two martial artists were swarmed by students asking questions, Ranma by the guys and Akane by the girls. Inside the classroom, the teacher put his head on his desk and cried. It was going to be one of the semesters if not years.

**Furinkan high school, later**

"Hmmm, I can't believe you Kuno-baby, why did you go after them?"

Kuno was laying in the infirmary, two more attempts on Ranma after the pool incident had left him worse for wear.

"I must free the fair Akane Tendo from that vile wretch Saotome."

"What if I'm not the one who needs to be freed?" Akane asked, stepping out from behind a curtain.

"Oh the most beautiful Akane Tendo has come to see me; my heart doth leap for joy, let us embrace and give proof of our love."

Kuno leapt from the bed to embrace Akane; at least he would of if it hadn't been for the leather straps and rope holding him to the bed.

"I'm afraid I can not share in our love at current for it appears someone has restrained my most noble self."

"Kuno do you have any honor?" Akane wasn't in the mood to listen to the delusional wannabe samurai.

"Of course I-" she cut him off again.

"Do you respect my family's honor?"

"In most certain terms do I, for-" she interrupted him again.

"Do you respect my own personal honor?"

"How could I not, for you are the one I love."

"Then if my personal and family honor were committed to something, would you interfere?"

"Of course not, for-" cut off again, it was too bad for the Tendo girls that they were cutting him off. This meant that they were forced to miss the greatest mangling of Shakespeare ever heard, outside of an American high school English class.

"Kuno, if you were challenged, made a promise on your honor, and lost you would you have to stick to your honor, wouldn't you?"

"Of course, for a promise made must be carried out or honor is lost."

Nabiki smirked; this was going to be easier then she had originally thought.

"Do you know what this is?" Akane asked, opening the paper Ranma had earlier and displaying it for the bound Kuno.

"Base lies and trickery from the wretch who sought to separate us, an obvious forgery."

Akane shook her head.

"Wrong Kuno, this is perfectly true and no forgery, no trickery whatsoever involved. I chose Ranma to be my champion." It was Kuno's turn to cut someone off.

"But I am already your champion and defender of your honor."

"No you are not, if you are or were, you can show me your copy of this." She gestured to the paper she held.

"It was not necessary to trouble your family with-," Kuno was actually almost getting used to being cut off, although the number of people who could do it and still walk afterwards could be counted on one's hands.

"In other words, you don't have one; as such you have no claim to being her champion. As such the challenge you issued was baseless and false. Ranma's challenge on the other hand had Akane's approval and was valid."

"And I defeated the wretch who thought himself a champion thus proving me worthy of being the better," Kuno proudly announced.

"Wrong Kuno you lost."

"Nay such a thing can not be as none can beat the blue thunder."

Nabiki put a VHS tape into the tape player that was set up by the bed. On the TV screen after a moment of static the tape played its recording.

It showed Ranma's proclamation, Kuno leading the horde's charge and subsequent defeat. It showed Akane and Ranma walk into the school leaving Kuno behind where he fell.

"See this so called champion left the field of combat and as such my most glorious self won." Kuno grinned broadly, secure in his horribly flawed logic.

"Oh in that case we need to change your record as far as Kendo goes."

"WHAT!!!" yelled Kuno, forsaking his usual flowery language for directness.

"Let me show you."

Nabiki switched tapes, the new ones showed a kendo match in which Kuno knocked out his opponent and left the ring.

"Looks like you lost that match."

She began to switch tapes, each one showing a similar, but different images over and over again.

"By these tapes and your own words, you lost all those fights."

Kuno shook his head from one side to another.

"Nay it can not be so, all pronounced me winner for the great Tatewaki Kuno doesn't loose." Akane felt a strange sense of Déjà vu at his words.

Nabiki switched back to the first tape. She dropped several sheets of paper on Kuno; a few were stained with drops of blood showing that no time had been wasted in getting the signatures after their defeat.

"These are signatures from the mob that Ranma beat, acknowledging their defeat. They also acknowledge that he beat you."

She switched sheets to hold up several different ones, "these are from the judges of several of your matches that you've had in the past, they all agree and say you lost."

Nabiki held up the last sheet moving in for the final blow.

"This is a copy of the pact between the Tendo and Saotome clans, if you respect family honor, you will not interfere."

Kuno's eyes darted over the sheet; he smiled seeing a ray of sunshine in this dreary situation (AN: Ahh crud, I have got to end this Kuno scene soon, I'm beginning to write like he talks).

"But this demonic pact is for one of the sisters, it does not specify the illustrious Akane, why must the foul one force himself on the beauteous Akane when her heart is with me?"

"Kuno I don't love you, hell I don't even like you."

"Fair goddess which dost make the very sun shine brighter. It grieves my heart greatly to hear you forced to such lies and yet you allow him to try and steal your heart from me for honor knowing full well that in the munificence of myself it would be fatal to break away from. Oh how noble thou are."

Now it is a known fact that dead poets aren't affected by bad poetry; of course mangling, maiming, tainting, corrupting, or putrefying poetry is an understatement when it comes to Kuno. As such Kuno several times a day forces many such poets to roll over. Shakespeare is usually the victim in this, much to his corpse's misery.

"Kuno he didn't try and steal my heart from you, he had it before you ever had a chance."

In essence it was true even if the specifics were off. After all, Kuno never had a chance. Of course by her statement and the hidden meaning Akane could have met Ranma yesterday, which she incidentally did, but Kuno didn't need to know that.

"How long dost he claim to hold your noble heart?"

"I claim he was given my heart almost two years ago."

"I will not allow it."

"You have no choice, by your own proclamation 'whoever doth defeat the fair Akane Tendo in combat earns the right to date her' he earned the right and your approval. Ranma defeated me in fair combat."

"I refuse to believe it."

"Ranma come here," Akane ordered in the direction of another screen. In response Ranma walked out and over to Akane.

"You called mistress?"

Kuno stared in shock at the scene before him.

"Defeat me in combat."

"Is that your command mistress?"

"It is."

Ranma moved forwards as soon as Akane finished her sentence, foot sweeping out slowly tripping Akane, only to have her caught by Ranma.

"I yield; you have beaten me and have earned the right to date with me." Their performance had been so obvious and staged nobody in their right mind would fall for such an obvious act.

Kuno watched, straining against his bonds and seething with rage.

"For harming the fair Akane Tendo I shall smite thee with the just divine wrath I am-."

"Can it Kuno, by your own decree he beat me."

No more poetry sprouted forth from Kuno, he just lay there on the bed staring at where Akane stood.

"Umm I think we broke him," Ranma observed.

Akane elbowed him in the stomach.

"Quiet," she growled.

"Let's head home I think Kuno-baby needs some time to think." Nabiki advised, drawing the two away from the bed and out of the infirmary.

The three left Kuno with his thoughts or as his mental acuity was down to now, his thought.

"He took that better then I thought he would."

Akane nodded, Nabiki merely smiled.

"It all depends on how you deal with him."

"Thanks Nabiki, hey Akane, can I talk to you alone for a minute."

"Sure Ranma, see you later Nabiki."

Nabiki kept walking, but as soon as she turned the next corner broke into a run, doubling back a block over and sneaking up behind where the two were standing. She peeked round the corner, camera leading, but the two were gone.

"Now where could those two have gotten too?" she asked, stepping into the street where her sister's fiancée and her sister should have been.

**Somewhere else**

"Well, those two certainly aren't wasting any time, are they?" the figure asked, leaning back into a plush chair.

The hooded figure beside him nodded in agreement.

"Did you really expect them to dither around like they did last time?"

"Well it was entertaining to watch at the very least, those two doing everything they could to hide their feelings from even themselves."

"It shouldn't be this easy for them, it will still be days before the others start arriving, and they've already taken care of the Hentai horde and Kuno."

"Methinks he dost protest too much."

The seated figure turned a withering gaze on the other.

"You've been watching Kuno way too much."

"Ahh come on, just because he's made almost as many muses cry as Ranma has love deities. You mean to tell me you don't find his poetry entertaining."

"Sure I did, and then he said a second sentence."

"So what do you have planned for those two right now?" The seated figure held up a folder that was slimmer then the rest. The hooded figure looked at it and in a moment a smile came to its face and it nodded.

**Streets of Nerima**

Nabiki shrugged, she didn't know how they got away, but she'd just grill her little sister when they got home. She continued on home, glancing around as if to try and catch sight of the pair.

"How did you know she was going to do that?"

"Lots and lots of experience when dealing with my sister for sixteen years and the two years we gained helped out taught me a great deal. I'd have been more suspicious if she hadn't tried something like that."

"I wish we could trust her more, she's your sister after all."

"Let's not worry about her right now."

"Alright," standing on a nearby rooftop, the two watched Nabiki searching for them for a few moments longer.

Akane turned to her fiancée, "so Ranma, what did you want to ask me about?"

Ranma blushed and suddenly found his feet the most interesting objects in the immediate area.

"W-w-would you um-like to go out tonight," Akane looked at him strangely, "with me I mean?"

Akane giggled and grabbed his arm.

"Of course I will baka, I can't believe you'll fight martial artists, dragons, ghosts, demons," they both shivered involuntarily and Ranma put his arm around Akane, "and even demi-gods, yet you're scared to ask me out."

"Ranma Saotome isn't scared of nothing."

"Oh yeah, how about cats?"

Ranma leapt into his fiancé's arms at her words.

"WHERE? WHERE?" he asked looking around frantically.

Akane grinned evilly and began running with her fiancé cradled in her arms.

"Akane, what are you doing?" Ranma asked.

"I'm going home, we need to change for our date," she stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

"But I'm a guy; shouldn't I be the one carrying you?"

Akane jumped off the roofs landing in a large puddle and splashing the two of them. Akane was thankful for the slight reduction in weight and height. Her fiancé was heavier than he looked.

"There, no problems now."

Ranma-chan settled into her fiancée's arms, it was surprisingly comfortable. She could smell Akane's scent. The sweet aroma of her perfume and as her hair came close the lovely shampoo she used as well.

'I can see why Akane only ever argued for a minute, this is nice.' She smirked to herself, 'can't let her know that though.'

The trip back to the house was carried out in relative silence, the pair just enjoying each other's company.

As they arrived on the Tendo house's roof together, almost reluctantly Ranma-chan left her fiancée's arms.

"Thanks for the lift, but tonight, it's my turn to carry you."

Akane smiled and made no objections, "I'll hold you too that."

They shared a quick kiss before returning to their respective rooms. A quick trip to the furo, separately, a change of clothes, and the pair was ready to go.

END of chapter 4, TBC

AN: 

Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Comments and criticism are welcome. I love reading your thoughts and ideas for the story. Keep them coming. Any questions can be sent to and I'll reply promptly.

Revision Notes:

Very few changes in this chapter, mostly grammar and spelling changes, updated chapter format to be compatible with fanfiction's software. I moved the two shadowy figures from the end of the chapter a little further forwards. Instead of using the two of them as comic relief they will be appearing at different points in chapters rather than entirely at the end of each chapter. This will work better than just stuffing them in at the end almost as if they are an after thought.


	5. Fights of Fancy

One Last Chance ch.5  
  
****Fights of Fancy****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Akane and Ranma went to school met Kuno, beat Kuno, beat Kuno, beat Kuno, then tied him to a bed and with Nabiki's help explained to Kuno that Ranma and Akane were in love and that he had been beaten soundly by Ranma. The two then decided to go on their first real date for both their lives.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Boy, where do you think you are going dressed like that?"  
  
"You're not going out with some girl are you son?"  
  
Ranma was jumped at the bottom of the stairs by Genma and Soun.  
  
"Sure I am Mr. Tendo, a very nice girl at that, one I'll marry someday."  
  
Genma reeled backwards in horror while Soun gathered himself to perform the demon head attack on his unfaithful potential son-in-law.  
  
"Ranma, are you ready to go?" Akane called from the top of the stairs.  
  
The three men at the bottom of the stairs turned to look up. Akane stood dressed in a form fitting sleeveless black dress, the legs had slits running a good ways up her legs allowing for easier movement, or fighting since it is Nerima, a red dragon design highlighted in gold wrapped around her body, leading the eye. The head of the dragon rested upon her right breast with its neck and body flowing over her shoulder and down her back where its tail was wrapped around her waist.  
  
Ranma stood before the bottom step; he was dressed in black pants and a red Chinese shirt, much like the ones he regularly wore, but this one added an air of formality and refinement. A white dragon design highlighted in gold had its head starting on Ranma's left breast, went over his shoulder and down his back to wrap around his waist.  
  
The couple's clothes were almost exact matches and complemented each other perfectly. The two just stood there looking at the other, each felt they could look at the other for eternity; unfortunately eternity has no place for Mr. Waterworks and Panda-man.  
  
"Boy, where did you get those clothes?"  
  
"Akane, when did you get that dress?"  
  
Their fathers just had to interrupt the romantic scene.  
  
"It was just there in my pack/closet," the two answered at once.  
  
The pair traded surprised looks, and just shrugged; it wasn't like this was the strangest or most unwanted thing that had happened to the pair. At least this time it was something good that happened to them, why look a gift horse in the mouth.  
  
Ranma held his arm out to Akane, who came down the stairs and took the offered limb.  
  
"Son, you show my daughter a good time." Soun slapped some yen into Ranma's hand, which he then forced the younger martial artist to pocket.  
  
"Don't worry Mr. Tendo; I'll have her back at a reasonable time."  
  
"Tomorrow evening is a good time boy," Genma held out two seals, "and if you feel like eloping you have my full approval."  
  
"Pop," Ranma growled.  
  
Akane dragged him out the door before their fathers could say anything else. As they watched their children go out the gate Soun moved over to slap Genma on the back.  
  
"My daughter is growing up." Soun was ecstatic  
  
"And then the schools will be united." Genma also shared his best friend's exuberance by slapping his friend's back, laughing all the while.  
  
"Right you are Saotome; it makes an old man's heart weep."  
  
"Say, whatever happened to the family seals I had?"  
  
"Forgetful as ever, you probably just put them down somewhere, now how about a game of Shogi?"  
  
"Right then Tendo, hope you're ready to lose?"  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"This has never happened before."  
  
"What?"  
  
"This, think about it, the only time we had peace was before Shampoo arrived."  
  
"What about Ryoga and Kuno?"  
  
"Kuno only really bothered us at school; he spent the rest of his time contemplating how to win you and the pigtailed girl. As for Ryoga, my fights with Ryoga didn't really become too regular or intense till Shampoo arrived."  
  
Akane's face took on a contemplative expression at Ranma's words.  
  
"And why was that?"  
  
"Well you used to tell P-chan about any and every little thing I did that made you angry, and so he'd come after me to make me pay." Ranma saw Akane tense up a little and put his arm around her.  
  
Reminding her just who P-chan was, wasn't the best of ideas. Akane moved close to Ranma, cuddling into him slightly. Ranma felt it best to change the topic of conversation.  
  
"We're quite the pair aren't we Akane, look how easy it is for us to make people fall in love with us."  
  
"Huh?" Akane couldn't quite see what Ranma was getting at.  
  
"Well for starters, you hit Toma and he fell in love with you."  
  
Akane elbowed her fiancée gently.  
  
"Well you beat up Shampoo and she's in love with you."  
  
"Not yet and hopefully not ever, she is still trying to kill me after all."  
  
Ranma shivered a little at the thought of Shampoo  
  
"Don't forget about Ukyo, she wanted you dead, you called her cute and all was forgiven."  
  
"What about Ryoga, you were nice to him in pig form and he became completely obsessed about you."  
  
"Let's not forget the one guy we both beat into loving us."  
  
The two shuddered at Akane's reminder.  
  
"Kuno," they both uttered together, shuddering slightly before laughing.  
  
"So when did you figure out you were in love with me, Akane?"  
  
"I think I first began to think about my feelings for you was when you protected me from Sanzenin and called me your fiancée in front of everyone at the martial arts figure skating competition. How about you, when did you come to love me?"  
  
Ranma gave a slight chuckle before replying.  
  
"I was yours' from, 'Hi I'm Akane, want to be friends?' that was the nicest thing I had ever heard. I think that and your smile were what made me fall in love with you."  
  
Akane spun in his arms so they were facing each other. She favored her fiancée with a smile before leaning in to kiss him.  
  
"Mmmmh, I came for the smile, I'll stay for the kisses."  
  
Ranma wrapped her in an embrace. She rested her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat.  
  
"This night has been so perfect. I just know something or somebody is going to ruin it."  
  
Ranma tightened his hold on Akane as he heard her words.  
  
"Even if that happens, at least we've had a nice evening together so far. Nobody tried to poison, magic, or drug either of us."  
  
"No fiancées, enemies, or rivals showing up to steal or kidnap you or me."  
  
The two were practically singing by this point.  
  
"No kidnappers stealing my fiancée."  
  
"No challenges for my fiancée by overpowered martial artists."  
  
They finished together, "best of all, NO MORE KUNO!"  
  
They laughed together as they walked through the park. There were other couples together, but they tended to ignore the others, lost in each other as they were.  
  
The night had been perfect to his point, the Chinese restaurant while not as good as the Nekohanten, was infinitely safer.  
  
They went to see a movie; unfortunately the only interesting movie playing had been a Bruce Lee movie they'd both seen several times, but this time was much more enjoyable then the other times since they were watching it together openly as a couple.  
  
The two had decided to finish off the evening with a walk through the park. It had been pretty uneventful, except for the one mugger who'd made the mistake of trying to attack Akane. She had thought he was just a pervert trying to grab her and gave him a beating. When Ranma pointed out he had been trying to rob them she had twisted him into a remarkable likeness of a human pretzel. Feeling sorry for the guy Ranma had merely punted him towards the police station with a note attached to him.  
  
"I think we should take a training trip together."  
  
Ranma's words broke the comfortable silence which had settled.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Well, we're still not used to these bodies yet so we should take a trip to help them get up to par for when the others start showing up. We have a week before Ryoga arrives, so we might as well take advantage of the situation."  
  
"What about our parents?"  
  
"You're right Akane; they were so opposed to our date tonight that we had to sneak out. I'm sure they will oppose any chance for us to get closer."  
  
"Baka," Akane replied, gently elbowing him in the stomach again, "we can leave the day after tomorrow and then be back the day before he gets here, that will give us a good four days to train."  
  
Ranma nodded in agreement.  
  
"Come on, let's head home, otherwise our fathers might think we really have eloped. Want to roof hop?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
Akane smiled and took a step backwards from he fiancée. Ranma quirked his eyebrow and was about to ask what she wanted to do instead when she leapt into his arms, which instantly moved to cradle her.  
  
"Now we can roof hop."  
  
Ranma smiled at his fiancée's words as she snuggled into him. He took off running, bouncing off a wall onto a roof and began running for home. The two laughed a little, but spent most of the run home just enjoying each other's presence in silence. The landed just inside the walls of the Tendo compound.  
  
"Thank you Ranma, I had a really good time tonight."  
  
"Not as good a time as I had," Ranma returned with a cocky grin.  
  
The two walked to the front door bantering back and forth on who had the better date. Kasumi met them at the door.  
  
"Oh my, don't you two look nice."  
  
Akane and Ranma blushed at the compliment.  
  
"Father and Mr. Saotome would like to see you two right away."  
  
"Okay Kasumi, we'll go see them right now."  
  
If there is a priest in there with them they are dead meat. The same thought crossed both Akane and Ranma's minds.  
  
The couple followed Kasumi into the house to find their fathers sitting at the table with a man and a woman who were sitting with them on the adjacent side of the table from their parents.  
  
Well at least it's not a priest. Ranma and Akane shared yet another thought.  
  
As Ranma and Akane walked in the couple turned and gave an appraising look and a smile to them. The two fiancées sat opposite the pair and examined them. The two looked very much like brother and sister if not twins.  
  
The woman was wearing a light blue kimono with stylized waves on it. Her eyes were a deep ocean blue; her hair was black, long and flowing.  
  
The man was dressed in a red dress shirt and black pants. His hair was cut short and fiery red, very similar to Ranma's female form. His eyes were a very dark brown, almost black.  
  
"You are Ranma Saotome, son of Genma Saotome?" The woman asked looking at Ranma.  
  
"You are Akane Tendo, youngest daughter of Soun Tendo?" The man asked looking at Akane.  
  
The pair nodded in response to the two questions.  
  
"And who might you be?" Queried Akane.  
  
"I am Miura Kusaragi and this is my twin brother Kyushin Kusaragi. We are your fiancées."  
  
"WHAT?" Ranma and Akane yelled in response.  
  
"As per the arrangement your fathers made with our father years ago, I am engaged to Genma Saotome's son, that would be you Ranma, and my brother is engaged to the youngest daughter of Soun Tendo, that would be you Akane."  
  
"Sorry, but we are already engaged to each other."  
  
"Do you love each other?"  
  
"Yes," they replied together, speaking as one without a moment's hesitation, Akane slipping her hand into Ranma's, who gave the offered limb a reassuring squeeze.  
  
"Then there's no problem."  
  
"Really?"  
  
It had never been this easy to get rid of a fiancée before, maybe their luck was changing for the better this time round.  
  
"Sure, my brother and I aren't adverse to sharing, especially if you really are cursed as your father keeps saying."  
  
A group face fault ensued, along with a disgusted Ranma resisting the urge to vomit as he shuddered at the suggestion.  
  
"You can't be serious."  
  
"Of course we are."  
  
Akane leveled her gaze across the table, "then we challenge you to a martial arts match. If you lose, you give up your engagement to us."  
  
"Very well, but if you lose, you give up your engagement to each other."  
  
"Fine you're on."  
  
The four stood up and headed for the dojo. Ranma put his hand on Akane's shoulder and held her back a moment.  
  
"Don't try and stop me Ranma, we're doing this together. If you try and stop me, I will make you hurt."  
  
Ranma backed away from his fiancée's glare.  
  
"Umm, I was just going to say you might want to change. You look so beautiful in that dress, I'd hate for anything to happen to that dress before you got to wear it again."  
  
"You're not going to try and stop me from fighting?" Akane asked, an underlying threat clearly present in her voice  
  
"Nope, wouldn't do me any good anyways, besides, we could both use the training these two will give us in the match."  
  
Akane stepped up and kissed Ranma on the lips.  
  
"mmmh, what was that for, not that I mind of course."  
  
"For being such a kind loveable baka."  
  
She ran upstairs to change, followed closely by Ranma.  
  
They split at the top of the stairs, each heading for their own rooms.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Are you ready?"  
  
"We are ready."  
  
The Kusaragi twins had also changed into new outfits.  
  
Miura was wearing a blue bodysuit very similar in design to the Kimono she had on earlier.  
  
Kyushin wore a similar bodysuit to Miura's, but his was red and looked more like his original clothing.  
  
"Are you ready?"  
  
Ranma glanced to Akane who was in turn looking at him. He gave her a reassuring smile and was rewarded with one of her own.  
  
"We're ready."  
  
Soun and Genma were watching from the sidelines, where they had been tied up so as not to be tempted to interfere in the match.  
  
Nabiki was conducting the fight and acting as referee.  
  
"The stakes of this match are the engagements of the two parties. Should Ranma and Akane win the Kusaragi twins will give up their claims of engagement to Ranma and Akane. Should the Kusaragi twins win, Ranma and Akane will give up their engagement to each other. Do both parties and all four involved agree to these terms and conditions?"  
  
Four affirmatives were her response.  
  
She dropped her raised hand to start the fight.  
  
"Begin."  
  
Ranma and Akane were thrown back against the dojo walls a few moments later.  
  
Akane was chilled to the bone while Ranma felt like he was on fire.  
  
"What was that?" he barked out, wincing at the pain.  
  
"My sister and I are heirs to the all out school of elemental art. We have trained so that we can use our ki to adjust the temperature of the environment around us and make attacks out of it. My sister uses cold ki while I use hot ki."  
  
Ranma and Akane had picked themselves off the ground while Kyushin was talking and were standing side-by-side, back into their stances.  
  
"Akane," Ranma said, just loud enough for Akane to hear, but none of the others.  
  
"Yeah Ranma," Akane replied at the same volume.  
  
"Generate a battle aura, get angry."  
  
"What?"  
  
Ranma inwardly cursed, he knew he was going to pay for this later, but it was better then losing Akane completely.  
  
"Jeez you uncute tomboy, I should have known better then to rely on you in this fight. You're too slow, can't kick, built like a brick, thighs are too thick, a real macho chick. I don't even know what I saw in you in the first place. Maybe I should get engaged to Miura."  
  
Ranma forced himself into the soul of ice to say those things to Akane, but it still hurt. The look of betrayal and hurt that Akane was giving him was amongst the worst things he'd ever known in his lives, and coming from somebody who had been thrown into a pit of cats and lived through his own death that was saying something.  
  
Akane could barely hold back her tears at Ranma's words.  
  
I thought he said he loved me, I was stupid to think a chauvinistic womanizer like him would care for me and stay with me.   
  
"Can we please continue this match please, I'd like to get to know my fiancée better."  
  
A huge red aura bloomed around Akane as Miura discovered the worst time to speak.  
  
Like hell if I'll let her take him away from me. He's mine, I love him and I will make him love me.   
  
The floor Akane was standing on began to darken and smoke around her feet at the heat she was giving off from her fiery red aura.  
  
The air around Ranma began to slow down as a chill took over and a dark blue aura developed. He had dropped into the soul of ice for the battle.  
  
Soul of ice, hell Akane hates me now. Soul of liquid nitrogen. I might have just killed my chances with the woman I love just for the sake of a fight. Soul of absolute zero.   
  
The Kusaragi twins stared at their fiancées. The auras that their opponents were giving off almost perfectly matched their own respective techniques. These two were perfect mates.  
  
Miura sent out a freezing blast at Akane while Kyushin sent a burning wave at Ranma.  
  
Kyushin's fiery wave fizzled out before it even came close to Ranma while Miura's own freezing blast steamed away as it came near Akane's aura, not even coming near to the very angry girl.  
  
The two martial artists began to circle the twins, staying on opposite sides of the circle, like polar opposites.  
  
Back to back the twins also turned, keeping their opponents in front of them. The air in the dojo swirled, going faster and faster.  
  
Akane and Ranma yelled together, "frozen flames technique, whirlpool crusher."  
  
As one the two punched forwards towards the twins. The winds of the dojo raced inwards at the two in the center, buffeting them in hot and cold air, alternating so quickly that neither twin could adjust their ki fast enough to compensate and only increased the torrent of air around them.  
  
Ranma and Akane rode on the outer wind currents receiving only a slight buffeting at the winds they had caused.  
  
Soon the twins collapsed in the middle of the dojo, killing the center of the vortex and dispelling the cyclone.  
  
Ranma and Akane also collapsed to their knees, shaking in fear, but not because of the duel.  
  
The Kusaragi twins lay groaning and unconscious, but otherwise okay at the center of the dojo, their bodies covered in bruises.  
  
"The winners are Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo, the Kusaragi engagement is broken."  
  
Nabiki's mouth was dry as she spoke. She had never seen something like that match outside of TV, the movies, or even Anime. She walked over to Genma and her father and untied them.  
  
"Take the Kusaragi twins to the house," she instructed, pointing to the unconscious and bruised duo.  
  
The fathers, also amazed at what they had just seen their children do, dumbly and mechanically complied with Nabiki's command.  
  
After the others had left it was just Akane and Ranma. The two hadn't moved since they had been deposited on the ground by the wind.  
  
Akane couldn't hold back her tears any longer and began to cry. Ranma heard this and moved over to her.  
  
As Ranma came close to her, Akane threw her arms around him and cried into his shoulder.  
  
"No," she whispered forcefully.  
  
Ranma wrapped his arms around her and let her cry.  
  
"I won't let you."  
  
"Won't let me what?"  
  
"I won't let you go, you are mine."  
  
"I thought you'd hate me."  
  
"I love you and I will win your heart and never let it go, nobody will take you away from me."  
  
"You're right Akane, no one will, I love you."  
  
Akane pulled back from him, looking confused, "but what you said to me during the fight?"  
  
Ranma pulled Akane back into a passionate hug, the tears he was shedding falling onto her shoulder.  
  
"I said those things so you would generate an aura, I didn't mean any of those things, I did it so we'd win and stay engaged to each other."  
  
"Baka."  
  
"I know I am, I love you and always will."  
  
"I love you too."  
  
"Akane."  
  
She shushed him, "don't ruin this."  
  
Ranma grinned.  
  
"Only if you kiss me."  
  
Akane giggled.  
  
"Only if you kiss me back."  
  
"Deal."  
  
Their lips met in a passionate kiss, neither one wanting to let go of the one they thought had been lost.  
  
Outside the dojo, Nabiki slid the door shut silently. She had cracked it open slightly and looked through after everyone had left.  
  
Now as she walked towards the house, she tried to think of a way to keep their fathers away from the dojo.  
  
She shrugged; in a situation like this always go with something simple.  
  
Peeking around the door to the living room where Soun, Genma, and Kasumi who was treating the two twins were.  
  
"Akane and Ranma are talking in the dojo about the match and other things. If anyone decides to eavesdrop, Akane promises to cook dinner for a week."  
  
At the horrified expressions on their faces, well the faces of those who were conscious at least, Nabiki safely concluded the two were safe for now.  
  
With a yawn she went upstairs to get some sleep, putting this on Ranma and Akane's now rapidly growing tab. She did have to say that things were getting a lot more interesting with her future brother-in-law around the house.  
  
She considered giving the two of them a discount, but then realized what she had been thinking and promised herself to charge Kuno twice the normal amount she usually did for pictures of Akane.  
  
Hmm, I wonder if he'd be interested in pictures of Ranma's girl half. Was Nabiki's last thought before she drifted off to sleep.  
  
Unseen by the rest of the household, a beautiful golden glow had filled the dojo where Ranma and Akane still were.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"AWWWW, isn't that so cute, the two have fought off their first challenge together. It really tugs at you heart doesn't it?"  
  
A figure sitting in a very comfortable chair turned away from watching his two favorite martial artists.  
  
"Truly, if one were moved by such touching displays then you would be correct."  
  
A cloaked figure turned its back on the display to face the seated figure which it was spending so much time with nowadays.  
  
"Well those twins didn't turn out to be too much of a distraction, although it was fun to watch the two when they thought the other had stopped caring, I think we need more of those scenes."  
  
"It will take some time for the next opportunity to get those two apart to come along. Their relationship if anything is probably going to become more intense after this battle, and with them going off like they are we won't be able to use those simpleton parents like before."  
  
"Then what would be the best course of action to take, I really don't like the idea of those two with no distractions being alone for almost a week."  
  
The cloaked figure pulled out another folder like so many others that it had previously pulled out.  
  
"Well if that is what you really want I do believe we can find a way to kick it up a notch."  
  
"How so?" The seated figures interest had been piqued by another chance to cause trouble for the soon to be ex-fiancées.  
  
"Well, while they will be away from their parents there are other things out there that can be turned to our advantage."  
  
The seated figure looked at the folder and a chuckled.  
  
"I think this will do quite nicely."  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ END of chapter 5, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: Christmas is coming, It's about time at that, Pleased to put a review in an author's hat, If you haven't a review some kind words will do, If you haven't got some kind words I don't want to hear from you.  
  
Well that's another chapter done, things start picking up from here and hopefully since school is out now I can concentrate more of my time onto updating this story.  
  
People are constantly comparing this too other fanfic that deal with going back in time, I have also been told that this has already been done before, one of the most popular comparisons is "Second Chances" a very good fic that I looked at and "Once More From The Top". Every time someone has said I am copying someone's fic I go and compare the two. So far except for the death and going back in time part I haven't seen all that many similarities. Admittedly I didn't get the inspiration to do this until after I had read second chances, that and I wanted to see if I'd be the first one to actually finish my back in time fic since the others seem to taper off and not update any more.  
  
Let me also point out that my fic differs from both the aforementioned fics in that in Second chances, Only Akane goes back and has a very different personality, and then in Once more, Nabiki, Ranma, and Akane all head back in time. In mine it is merely the two main characters. I actually scraped one idea I had for part of the fic because it came too close to another for comforts.  
  
So could people please stop constantly comparing me with these two fics.  
  
It seems people are getting more and more interested in the two figures that I include at the end of the chapters, well I'd tell you, but that would spoil the surprise, maybe I'll reveal their identities as a Christmas present.  
  
Thank you for the reviews I have received, they are a very big driving force in writing this fanfic. The more I write, the more reviews I get, the more reviews I get the more I want to continue this story. So as long as I have more people who want me to continue this story then people who don't want me to continue, I will keep writing One Last Chance.  
  
As always feel free to write a review, C&C is welcome, if you wish to talk to me personally feel free to E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I will try to respond as promptly as possible.  
  
Hope you enjoyed the story so far, more coming soon.  
  
Rhuobhe26 


	6. Two Cool for School

One Last Chance ch.6  
  
****Two Cool for School****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Akane and Ranma went on their first date together. Upon returning back home, the two found a pair of suitors waiting for them, courtesy of Genma and Soun's past. The suitors were a pair of twins called Miura and Kyushin Kusaragi, two practitioners of the all out school of elementally art. Our heroes of course beat the two in a martial arts match using a very impressive technique. The two have planned on leaving for a few days on a training trip, but first, the second day of school.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Morning, Tendo compound ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"BYE," a pair of voices, one female and the other sometimes male called out as they headed out of the house.  
  
"Well Ranma, what do you have think is going to happen this morning?"  
  
"I'm not sure, but Nabiki has a list of guys I defeated yesterday and a list of those who didn't fight. If they do choose to fight one list is going to get longer while the other gets shorter."  
  
"What happens if some of those perverts you've already beaten decide not to pay attention to the challenge and decide to attack you again."  
  
"Nabiki said she'd take care of them, and I for one would rather go ten rounds with Ryoga or Herb then deal with Nabiki's wrath."  
  
"I guess your right, but she's not that bad."  
  
Ranma shot a questioning look at Akane who quickly relented under his gaze.  
  
"Ok so maybe she is, but that doesn't mean you should point it our where she could hear you."  
  
Ranma laughed as he placed his hands on Akane's waist and the two jumped on to the fence together. Running towards the school, Akane held Ranma's hands on her waist when he tried to pull them away.  
  
She didn't need his support to balance, but she enjoyed the feel of his rough, strong, yet gentle hands supporting her too much to allow him to let go. Ranma for his part didn't try to remove his hands with too much effort, as he was content to let them be.  
  
In his peripheral vision, he saw the old lady splashing the ground he would have been walking had Akane and he been walking on the ground like they originally had a whole two years ago.  
  
As Furinkan's gates came into view the two martial artists jumped off the fence. Neither was quite sure what to expect, although they could always hope for the best.  
  
The sight of the hentai horde wasn't entirely unexpected, but neither was it a welcome sight. On the other hand the fact that they were just standing there looking ready to cry, rather than charging towards them with declarations of love and defeat.  
  
"What do you lot want, I already beat most of you yesterday so you can't challenge me again, if the rest of you want a beating, I'll be more than happy to oblige you, if that's what you really want." Ranma added the last part with an evil grin.  
  
One individual dressed in a baseball uniform stepped forwards.  
  
"We have come to say our goodbyes to Akane Tendo, we have seen that we stand no chance against your fiancée, congratulations Ranma Saotome."  
  
Another boy dressed in a fencing outfit stepped forwards  
  
"After all, you defeated Kuno over several times yesterday; he was the school's greatest fighter."  
  
Another large boy dressed as a sumo decided to put his two cents in.  
  
"Yeah, and the school's greatest pervert."  
  
There was a murmur of agreement from the assembled group. Neither Ranma nor Akane felt like debating the point, mostly because anyone would have a hard time coming up with an argument against Kuno's perversion, even the Kendo team who usually backed him up in all things.  
  
Ranma and Akane relaxed at hearing the words of the admissions from the assembled group. It seemed one more obstacle was down already and they didn't have to spend several days beating them up.  
  
As they walked into school a thought came to Ranma.  
  
"Not that I'm complaining or nothing, but shouldn't Kuno of been there denying the fact I beat him?" Ranma asked, following the weeping horde of boys into the school.  
  
Akane began to giggle; "you do realize that we left Kuno in the nurse's office last night."  
  
"Yeah, so what, he looked like he needed time to think about what we told him."  
  
"Well if you remember, we sort of forgot to untie him."  
  
Ranma began to laugh as well.  
  
"Oh well I'm sure somebody let him go."  
  
The two walked to class, neither aware of the bound Kendoist sleeping in the nurses office.  
  
The day proceeded without interruption from anything unusual. Unusual being a relative term of course, this is Nerima after all. Contrary to popular belief Nerima was weird before Ranma came to Nerima. It was merely that many people chose to ignore the weirdness around them and act like nothing had happened. Akane was after all another chaos avatar, Ranma's arrival merely amplified the disruption and made it harder to ignore.  
  
Kuno didn't bother them once all day, but that mostly had to do with the fact that the nurse not releasing Kuno from his imprisonment. She didn't want to release him since he looked so sane asleep in his restraints.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Compound later that day ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"I swear if those two excuses for fathers have a fiancée in there waiting for either of us, I'm going to slowly and brutally maim them." Ranma growled.  
  
"I'll help," agreed Akane as they approached the door to the house.  
  
"We're home," the apprehensive couple called as they entered the house, slipping off their shoes.  
  
"Oh, Akane, Ranma, welcome home. Father and Mr. Saotome would like to talk with the two of you."  
  
Kasumi greeted the two fiancées, seemingly oblivious to their displeasure at her words. The two traded less then happy looks before walking down the hall and stepping into the living room.  
  
Akane lashed out with her foot after stepping into the room, catching her father as he jumped at her from where he had been hiding by the doorframe.  
  
Ranma's uppercut caught his father as he dived at Ranma from the ceiling.  
  
The two parents went flying into the center of the room, Genma bouncing off the ceiling first, hard enough to shake the boards, but not hard enough to go crashing through them.  
  
"And just what did you two fools think you were doing?" Akane growled.  
  
"Yeah pops, what's the meaning of this?" Ranma questioned, holding up a pair of rags that their fathers had, up until a few seconds ago, been holding.  
  
"Well Akane, my daughter, we wanted to congratulate you and your fiancée for you victory last night."  
  
"How with a wedding?"  
  
The two older men nodded.  
  
"Care to explain this old man?" Ranma asked, once again gesturing to the rags, which he now held in a clenched fist.  
  
"We just wanted to make sure it was a surprise for you and Akane so that it would be special. Oh whatever did I do to deserve such an ungrateful son?"  
  
"Besides toss that same son into a pit of starving cats?" If a person listened closely, one could detect a hint of anger in Ranma's tone.  
  
"Or engage that same son to multiple women and sell him for a simple meal?" If a person had been deaf they still would have been able to hear the anger in Akane's every word.  
  
"Next time, try asking us if we want to, before you try the chloroform."  
  
Ranma threw the rags at Soun and Genma, each rag hitting a father in the face.  
  
The two older men gasped in shock as the rags hit them, not a very smart thing to do, before passing out where they lay.  
  
Akane walked over to the two sorry excuses for martial artists and removed the rags from their faces. She was angry enough to maim, but she didn't really want to kill the two idiots..Yet.  
  
"Well looks like they're going to be out for a while, do you want to get packed and leave now or wait for tomorrow?"  
  
"I think we should probably leave after dinner, and get one of Kasumi's delicious meals in us first before we head out. Even the best camp meal can't compare to a home cooked meal."  
  
"Baka, you're always thinking with your stomach."  
  
"What can I say, I need to eat properly if I want to stay strong, and so do you."  
  
"Fine, but first I want to do something we've never been able to do before." Akane's face turned upwards into a very Nabiki Cheshire grin.  
  
"And what would that be?" Ranma asked, usually whenever anyone got a Nabiki grin it meant mischief at best and terror at worst. For some reason whenever one of the Tendo daughters did it, it conveyed the message even more clearly then a regular person's grin would, albeit no one could ever recall Kasumi wearing any smile but her usual serene, at peace with the world, everything is ok, tension diffuser smile  
  
"I want to kiss you in front of our parents and not be standing next to a priest a day or two later." Akane's grin turned into a very seductive smile.  
  
"Your wish is my command." Now Ranma was the one wearing a Nabiki grin.  
  
The two of them stepped forwards and engaged in a lip lock that was even more passionate then it looked to any observer, but since the only two possible witnesses happened to be unconscious the point is moot.  
  
They held that position for nearly a minute before breaking apart, both grinning like a pair of c-c-cats who just left a room, which once contained several canaries.  
  
"My my, aren't we a naughty girl."  
  
"You enjoyed it too hentai."  
  
Ranma stuck his tongue out at her. "Did I ever say I didn't?"  
  
"Don't point that at me unless you're ready to use it."  
  
The two engaged in another kiss.  
  
"I'm home." Nabiki's voice rang out as the front door slid open and closed. Nabiki was greeted to the sight of a laughing Akane, nearly bowling her over, run upstairs followed shortly behind by an equally happy Ranma.  
  
"Pack only what think you'll need." Nabiki heard Ranma say as he and her sister split apart, her entering her room and Ranma heading for the guest room where he and his father were sleeping.  
  
"Don't think you're getting away that easily Saotome." Nabiki muttered under her breath.  
  
After that little disappearing stunt he and her sister had pulled yesterday, disappearing from her and then showing up after going on a date of all things. The Saotomes had only been here two days after all. Nabiki even for all her intelligence can still be forgiven for forgetting the somewhat unusual fact that while chronologically, the Saotomes had only been here for two days; Ranma and Akane possessed two additional years worth of knowledge.  
  
She could overlook the fact that they had gotten away from her. That could be rectified in the future by merely having one of her underlings watching Ranma at any given point outside of the house. It wasn't as if he could jump over building to so that shouldn't be too hard.  
  
She could overlook the fact that Akane had suddenly gotten a very new and beautiful dress that perfectly complimented Ranma's attire. She would merely have to borrow said dress for an indefinite period of time after failing, in accordance to a mental lapse, to ask permission to take possession of the property in question. After all share and share alike among sisters right? Briefly a less then pure part of her mind wondered if that applied to her sister's fiancée, he looked better then just about all the guys at school. His well-defined muscles and handsome face would have most women looking twice. Maybe she'd have to accidentally walk in on him in the near future while he was taking a dip in the furo, completely accidental of course.  
  
She could overlook the fact that Akane and Ranma had taken down two obviously skilled martial artists in only a total of six punches, four from their opponents and a single punch apiece from Ranma and Akane. That neither the recipient nor the attacker of each punch had been nearer then ten feet from the other the entire match wasn't a problem either. That Akane and Ranma had created what seemed to be a vortex of air was no trouble to her.  
  
What she did have trouble with on the other hand was how Ranma had surprised and put her off balance several times over the last three days by merely being there. It was almost as if Ranma's arrival heralded chaos itself. She shook thought off as merely her needing to finish conducting business with Kuno faster so she was around his speech patterns less. Him putting her off balance like that was something she also could have overlooked, had it not been for the fact he was doing it both without conscious thought or intention, and the sheer number of times he was seemingly successful in his ventures.  
  
This Ranma who had come into the life of the Tendo family like a whirlwind, seemingly bringing his father along for the ride rather then the other way around. A ride, which it seemed the Tendo family was now along for.  
  
She could only guess at what would happen in the future, but that didn't let her plans to make money be distracted by such meaningless concerns as what might happen. She found it easier to pay attention to problems and situations which where more in her control and knowledge.  
  
Ranma Saotome was still too much of an enigma for her to adequately clarify him. She really wasn't sure of his skill as a fighter. He seemed good enough and he obviously had skill, his battles against the twins the night before had been more then enough proof of that. Yet the fights he had been in to date had all ended too quickly for him to see more then a punch or kick he threw that ended the match.  
  
She needed to get to know Ranma better if she were to be able to set odds on him in the gambling pools she knew would spring up around school by his arrival. In fact she already had plans on several she might start, but she needed to find out more about Ranma Saotome to hedge the bets so as to give her the best odds.  
  
If there was one thing Nabiki Tendo didn't like it was not knowing all the facts, her other pet peeves included bokken wielding idiots, any waste of money, and a lack of control over any situation. Her likes almost all include money, mischief, or ice cream so I don't really think I'll go into them. After all none of this serves any purpose to furthering the story except for the first sentence of this paragraph up to the comma.  
  
Nabiki wandered up the stairs and headed for her room, visions of yen and possibilities of exploiting Ranma coming to her head. She was beginning to give some serious thought to whether or not the hormonally charged Furinkan male populous would be interested in some pictures of a certain red-head in less then normal amounts of clothes. Hmm, it just might work; maybe even Kuno would buy a picture or two, just maybe.  
  
Nabiki shut the door to her room and began making plans for increasing her fiscal reserves at the expense of a certain freeloading pigtailed houseguest who just might end up being her brother-in-law.  
  
Kasumi entered the living room to find two old foolish martial artists passed out peacefully on the floor.  
  
"Oh my."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House, even later that evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Around a certain dinner table 3 girls and a sometimes guy sat eating a meal that looked for all intensive purposes delicious.  
  
"So where did dad and Mr. Saotome disappear too?" Nabiki asked.  
  
"Well they seemed to be tired so I put them to bed early." Kasumi responded.  
  
"Hmm I wonder why they are so tired ehh Akane?"  
  
"I have no idea Ranma, they must have found someone who disagreed with them on some issue."  
  
"Really, I wonder what the disagreement could have been." Kasumi just didn't seem to pick up the not so subtle undertones of the conversation that her sister and her sister's fiancée were having.  
  
"Maybe they tried to force somebody into something that they didn't want." Nabiki suggested, watching the exchange carefully. Ok, now I'm sure that those two have something to do with this.   
  
"I don't think so Nabiki, I have a feeling that they merely tried to force somebody to do something before they were ready for it. That seems something more along the lines of something those two would do. Don't you agree Ranma?"  
  
"Definitely, I think my pops must be a bad influence on your father. The two should really be more careful or they might end up getting hurt.'  
  
"Akane, Ranma, I heard you mention something about taking a trip, where are you planning on going?"  
  
Nabiki stared at Kasumi in shock, how did her older sister know about something she hadn't even caught scent of. So caught up in her own thoughts she hadn't even paid attention to Ranma's comment about packing when he and Akane had almost run her down as she came home.  
  
"Ranma and I are going on a training trip for a couple of days We need some time together away from prying ears" Akane shot Nabiki a glance that could very easily have been mistaken for a glare, "and prying eyes."  
  
"A couple of days with no Kuno won't hurt either." Ranma added.  
  
"So when are you two leaving?"  
  
Nabiki was curious, she had plans to make, maybe she should get a couple of her associates to tail her sister or at least watch over her, after all, she still didn't know what type of man Ranma was and she wasn't going to trust her sister's safety to just anybody.  
  
"After dinner as a matter of fact, we thought it best to get going right away so we'd be able to get in more training tomorrow than if we had to leave then."  
  
Nabiki frowned slightly, that wouldn't do at all, she wouldn't be able to get any of her underlings briefed and ready fast enough to follow the two martial artists, if they really were planning on leaving so suddenly.  
  
She would have offered to go herself, except she really didn't want to spend an uncertain number of days in the wilderness with those two, despite whatever information she could find out. That was the point of having underlings, associates, and lackeys in the first place. She'd let them get away from her this once, but that was it. After they got back she was going to watch Ranma like a hawk and find out just what she wanted to know from the raven-haired time traveling martial artist.  
  
"Would you like me to pack you some food?"  
  
"Thanks Kasumi that would be great we wouldn't want to have to eat Ak-."  
  
Ranma's next words were cut off as a rush of air left Ranma's mouth. This was largely caused by his fiancée's elbow was in his stomach.  
  
"What did you do that for?" Ranma asked, after straightening up.  
  
"Preemptive preventative measures, that's what I did that for." Akane returned.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Simple, I figure while you teach me martial arts, I'm going to help you learn to keep your mouth shut so you're less inclined to have any run-ins with mallet-sama."  
  
Ranma gulped, why did Akane have to say it that way. He would have opened his mouth to say something, but since Akane's elbow was still right in front of him, he realized that discretion was the better part of valor and kept his trap shut. The taste of his own feet was definitely something he wouldn't miss.  
  
"Good job Ranma, I knew you were a fast learner. Now, here's your reward." Akane leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.  
  
They were interrupted by the gagging sounds coming from Nabiki.  
  
"If you don't mind, some of us are trying to eat here and would greatly appreciate it if we could keep our food down."  
  
"You're just jealous that you don't have a hunky fiancée with such a hot body Nabiki." Strangely enough this comment came from Akane and not Ranma.  
  
"I'm not jealous, why would I be jealous of a jerk like him?"  
  
"He may be a jerk, but he's my jerk, so don't go getting any ideas." Nabiki was shocked by the level of possessiveness she heard in Akane's voice.  
  
Akane had always been possessive over things that belonged to her, clothes, toys, weights, but this was different. Akane had always been at least willing to share her things, but not this time. Nabiki clearly heard the underlying threat in Akane's voice. It seemed to say, 'He belongs to me, try anything and you will suffer.' Not that the ice queen would ever admit it, but she was slightly scared at her sister's words.  
  
For once, not knowing what to say, she merely nodded.  
  
Akane seemed to accept that, but she still had a wary look in her eyes.  
  
"I put the food in your packs Akane, you can lave whenever you're ready." Kasumi said, entering the room and breaking the growing air of tension that had formed between the two sisters.  
  
"Thank you Kasumi, I'm not as good a cook as I am a martial artist, and the memory of this meal will at least offset what I'm going to be eating."  
  
Akane was about to elbow Ranma again, when she realized he had not even mentioned her cooking.  
  
Ranma stood up, "well Akane, shall we go?" Ranma asked, extending his hand down to help her up.  
  
Akane was tempted to slap his hand away and stand on her own, but instead she took his hand and stood with his help. He isn't trying to demean you, he's being kind, don't hurt him for trying to be nice.   
  
"Ok Ranma, let's go."  
  
The two stood up and left the room, heading for the packs they had left by the door.  
  
Hearing the door shut as the two left, Nabiki breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
"Something wrong Nabiki?" Kasumi asked, noticing the brief flicker of emotion across her sister's face.  
  
"It was Akane, I teased her about Ranma and she practically threatened me."  
  
"Are you scared she'd hurt you over Ranma, you're her sister." Kasumi tried to comfort her sister.  
  
"You didn't see her before you came in, when she thought I might have tried to take Ranma from her."  
  
"Do you think she'd really hurt you over Ranma, they only known each other for two days, or maybe two years if what they claim is true. She's known us for sixteen or eighteen years."  
  
Nabiki looked at her older sister skeptically.  
  
"We don't know what happened in those two years. From what they told us the other night, it seems like I might have caused some trouble for them over those two years. I'm not sure, but I think that just maybe she would be willing to kill for him and he might be willing to kill for her."  
  
"Now Nabiki-"  
  
"No Kasumi, you didn't see her a few moments ago. I was actually scared by her. I don't know what she and Ranma have or had, but I do believe it would be dangerous to get between those two."  
  
Kasumi was shocked by the vehemence in her sister's statement. She had never seen Nabiki so shaken up since their mother's death. Even Kasumi's seemingly unshakeable demeanor was slightly disturbed by not just what her sister was saying, but also because of the way her sister was acting. Akane was the one who was meant to display extreme emotions, not Nabiki and definitely not herself.  
  
Somehow, for some reason, in some way, everything had suddenly changed since the Saotomes came into their life, whether for the better or the worse was hard to say. All that the two older Tendo sisters could be sure of was that they didn't know their little sister as well as they should, and they definitely didn't know enough about their new house guests and possible in-laws.  
  
Neither sister was quite sure which revelation was more disturbing.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"You're really pushing it this time."  
  
The seated figure turned to look at the cloaked figure who was standing behind him.  
  
"And what do you mean by that?" The seated figure asked.  
  
"Genma, Soun, Kuno, and most of the others are fair game. Kasumi is someone no sorcerer, demon lord, or even greater god would tamper with. She is off limits by unspoken mutual consent. Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to be to messing with her?"  
  
The cloaked figure was sorely tempted to start pacing back and forwards to help work off some of his frustration at the seated figure's seeming stupidity. How could any being be stupid enough to meddle with an untouchable like Kasumi?  
  
"I haven't done anything with or to Kasumi. I know how much trouble that would cause. Even I wouldn't risk so much just for a little amusement. Hell, even Puck at his worst wouldn't be that stupid."  
  
The cloaked figure didn't say anything, given the seated figures statement, yet the figure's actions to date were sorely in contrary to the statement. That didn't explain why the Tendo sister reacted that way.  
  
"Then what about her reaction to Nabiki's reaction to Akane when the youngest Tendo practically threatened her own sister over Ranma? Are you saying you had nothing to do with that?"  
  
The seated figure almost stood up to angrily retort, but managed to remain seated.  
  
"That's right, that was all them and their doing, I had no part in the little drama that just unfolded before us."  
  
"Then this is troubling news for us."  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"Because it would mean that you are not the only person who appears to want to interfere."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"That or something more than what we thought happened when those two began their new lives."  
  
The two stayed in quiet contemplation for some time, merely watching the two human martial artists who had so many beings interested in them.  
  
The cloaked figure began to laugh.  
  
"What do you find so funny about this situation?"  
  
"Oh it's quite simple actually."  
  
The cloaked figure lowered leaned on the back of the seated figure's chair and explained the new theory it had recently come up with.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yes." The cloaked figure nodded slightly in affirmation.  
  
The seated figure was no longer seated as it stood up and stepped into the light.  
  
The armour the figure wore was black as night. Leather bracers over pale white skin, a hardened leather breastplate covered the torso. A cape as dark as pitch flowed down the figures back to boots of black leather.  
  
The face was a skull, but it possessed one discrepancy from most other skulls. Two beautiful eyes. The two eyes were the eyes of a human. Two sky blue eyes.  
  
"Well that changes things, doesn't it? Well my beautiful Ranma, have no fear things are going well. Soon, soon, my lovely god slayer."  
  
The armoured figure laughed.  
  
The cloaked figure joined in.  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, END OF CHAPTER 6 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
AN: Well that is the end of this chapter. I wanted to write something special for Christmas, but I decided that I couldn't really do anything special this early in the story besides begin the introduction of one of the two figures.  
  
All I can say is merry Christmas to everyone out there who celebrates Christmas. For those of you who don't celebrate Christmas, happy December 25th.  
  
Let me know how this chapter has turned out. Please Read and Review. I welcome your comments, criticism, and all manner of responses, although I really don't like the flames that much. I must say that I am surprised by the number of reviews this has gotten so far, but I am also grateful to know so many people are reading this fanfic and are seemingly enjoying it.  
  
If you'd like to get in touch with me and have me respond please E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com 


	7. A Time to Train

One Last Chance ch.7  
  
**** A Time to Train****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Akane and Ranma went on their first date together. Upon returning back home, the two found a pair of suitors waiting for them, courtesy of Genma and Soun's past. The suitors were a pair of twins called Miura and Kyushin Kusaragi, two practitioners of the all out school of elementally art. Our heroes of course beat the two in a martial arts match using a very impressive technique. The two have planned on leaving for a few days on a training trip, but first, the second day of school.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, later that evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Are we almost there yet." Akane was impatient, tired, sore, and hungry.  
  
"Closer then we were last time you asked." Ranma was merely impatient and hungry.  
  
The two had been walking for a few hours and it was beginning to get dark. Akane and Ranma had been walking since they left the Tendo residence. Ranma refused to let them take any form of transportation beyond their own legs.  
  
Oh yeah, that baka calls it training, more like torture, I'm sure he's just laughing it up. If I complain, I'm sure he'll just call me a weak tomboy.   
  
Ranma was well aware of Akane's growing ire, and he had a sneaky suspicion that it was directed at him.  
  
What does she expect, it's training, I can't just carry her pack for her if she expects to get stronger. Is that what she's angry about? I swear that I'll never understand her.   
  
"OK."  
  
"Ok what Ranma?"  
  
"We're here."  
  
Akane's face lit up, all she wanted to do was go to sleep and get some rest before getting up to train tomorrow.  
  
"Finally, I thought we were never going to get here."  
  
"Well we are, let's set up camp here and get some sleep, the next few days are going to be quite busy. I imagine that we'll be shattered by the end. But it'll be worth it to get back up to where we were before we came here."  
  
"Do you really think we'll be able to get ourselves back up to as good as we were in such a short time."  
  
Ranma shook his head, "I don't think we'll be able to get back to as strong and fast as we were in such a short time as the next couple of days, but this will at least be a step in the right direction."  
  
"Ok, let's get to bed."  
  
The two began searching through their packs for their tents. After a couple minutes searching Akane stopped and looked at Ranma.  
  
"Ranma."  
  
"Yeah Akane?"  
  
"I think our dads removed the tent from my pack."  
  
Just like them, doing everything they can to force Akane and me together even when we've already said we want to be together. How stupid can you get? Ranma really wanted to say some less then nice things about their fathers, but he thought better of it.  
  
"That's ok, I have my tent and you can use it if you want to."  
  
"Where will you sleep Ranma?"  
  
"I'll just sleep under the stars, did plenty of that with pops when we were traveling. You can take the tent."  
  
"That's ok Ranma, I trust you not to do anything too improper."  
  
Ranma froze as he was setting up his tent when Akane's words sunk into him.  
  
"What do you mean by too improper Akane?" Ranma gulped.  
  
Akane smiled sweetly, "I'm just saying I wouldn't be opposed to a little cuddling, after all we are fiancées so I'm sure no one would object. After all there's no one else here to object and no fathers forcing us into marriage even if they were here to see us."  
  
Ranma, surprised at the changes his fiancée's attitude had gone through in the past couple of days. Akane had never been this forward with him and he was constantly being surprised by this new Akane.  
  
"Really Akane?"  
  
"Definitely."  
  
Ranma had his tent set up in record time and decided not to have a snack before going to bed that night.  
  
The tent was a small dome tent, but large enough to fit two people as long they were prepared to share the space. Ranma crawled into his sleeping bag and lay down, ready to get some sleep that night, and hoping he could actually get some sleep that night with his fiancée lying right beside him.  
  
He closed his eyes and hoped for pleasant dreams, as Akane got ready to sleep.  
  
Ranma's eyes jolted open, as his sleeping bag was unzipped. He saw Akane leaning over him and smiling at him.  
  
"A-Akane, what are you doing?" Ranma stammered.  
  
"I told you baka, I said I wouldn't mind some cuddling and so that's what I'm going to do, any objections?"  
  
"Nope, none at all. So all you want to do is cuddle?"  
  
"Well I wouldn't mind a goodnight kiss either." Akane said as lay down next to him pulling her unzipped sleeping bag over the two of them.  
  
"You wish is my command." Ranma lowered his head, lips brushing against Akane's own. She hungrily pressed her lips harder onto his. Capturing his head with her hands so he couldn't pull away. Of course the thought of pulling away was the farthest thing from Ranma's mind at that moment.  
  
Eventually breaking the kiss Akane lay her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her body holding her protectively to him.  
  
"Sleep well my beautiful fiancee." Ranma whispered into her hair.  
  
"Sleep well my love." Akane replied into his chest  
  
Like that the two fell asleep, sharing each other's presence as the two fiancées practically glowed of contentment.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wilderness, campsite, early morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
Training trip, Day 1  
  
The sun was just beginning to rise as Ranma awoke.  
  
Man that was one of the best nights sleep I've ever gotten. I guess I'd forgotten how good it was to camp out. I guess Akane and me are going to have to do this more often. Speaking of Akane, I wonder if she's ready to train today.   
  
Ranma's train of thought was interrupted when something in his arms moved. It was at this point that the half-awake Ranma became the fully awake Ranma as he realized that there was something lying on his chest and that he had his arms around said object.  
  
The object in question appeared to be warm, soft, and marginally heavy. Looking down Ranma made several more observations in his personal quest to discover what said object was. Ranma felt hair on his face and breathed in. The object smelled very nice and was in all likelihood human or demi-human, Ranma having encountered both over his life. If the feeling Ranma was getting from his torso was correct the object's chest wasn't as flat as a male's should be.  
  
For a moment Ranma panicked and thought that Shampoo had snuck into his bed again, but the smell and the colour of the hair were wrong.  
  
Memories of last night came back to Ranma and of Akane being the one who had them sleeping like this. This actually increased Ranma's curiosity, Akane always kicked, punched, and tossed in her sleep. Ryoga had informed Ranma of this while he had been pretending to be Akane's little pet pig. Ranma was amazingly comfortable and had slept great.  
  
I just hope she remembers that as well before she decides to pound me.   
  
The object now having been identified as one Akane Tendo began to stir in his arms.  
  
"Good morning sleepyhead." Ranma said, giving the object in his arms a gentle squeeze and kissing the top of her head.  
  
"RANMA WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY TENT?" Ranma closed his eyes and tensed up ready for the pounding he was about to receive, it was obvious by her tone of voice that Akane didn't remember that she had been the one who suggested the sleeping arrangements.  
  
To his great surprise he felt Akane move up in his arms and kiss him on the lips.  
  
"Good morning Ranma, I hope you slept as well as I did." Akane's voice was sweet and pleasant. Ranma wasn't prepared for that, but neither was he going to complain about not being beaten.  
  
"Your not mad with me?" Ranma asked, knowing he shouldn't' risk Akane's ire, but not being able to help himself.  
  
"Why should I be mad at you?"  
  
"Well I'm lying here with you under covers in a tent, aren't you going to get angry?"  
  
"No, you're nice and warm and soft and smell nice, I'm not angry, you're comfy."  
  
Ranma came to the conclusion that Akane must not be completely awake yet. The portion of him that was prone to putting his foot in his mouth was tempted to say something along the lines of, 'well that's good for you, you don't have some heavy tomboy laying on you.' but thankfully for him that wasn't what came out.  
  
"A guy could get used to waking up this way."  
  
Akane smiled and rested her head back on his chest, moving a little to try and get comfortable.  
  
"Umm Akane, we need to get up and eat breakfast so we can start training."  
  
"Just five more minutes ok?"  
  
Ranma knew they should get up; it was best to start training in the morning so they'd have more time to work and train. That was the reason they had come out here in the first place wasn't it. To improve their bodies they'd need to work hard over the next couple of days.  
  
At the same time Ranma felt safe and loved here holding the woman he loved in his arms. He was comfortable and happy just lying there. Ranma really didn't want to leave, here with Akane he felt whole, as if something that had always been missing from his life had been found.  
  
Ranma was truly torn over the issue.  
  
On one hand training and being the best martial artist there was. This meant getting out of the sleeping bags and dragging Akane with him so they could train. The bonus to this was that they'd be more ready for the coming troubles that the two of them would have when the other fiancées and rivals began to show up.  
  
On the other hand Akane was the woman he loved, she loved him, and Ranma knew it. Laying here with Akane was one of the greatest things he'd ever had the pleasure of enjoying. After all Akane and him had gone through, didn't they deserve a little peace and happiness together without anyone trying to pull them apart or push them together? Here together there was no chance of anything like that happening so they could indulge themselves and enjoy themselves.  
  
His father would have said, 'A martial artist must always put martial arts first, never allowing personal comfort to interfere with one's training.' Thinking of his father's advice made up Ranma's mind for him.  
  
Marital arts could wait. He wrapped his arms around Akane and relaxed, closing his eyes and savoring the feel of her body and heartbeat, the smell of her hair, and the sound of her rhythmic breathing.  
  
"Ok Akane, we can take as many five minutes as we want to." Akane was almost back to sleep and just murmured unintelligibly before dropping back into dreamland.  
  
At that point he couldn't care less about training. Ranma lay there just savoring the moment before eventually drifting off into a blissful slumber.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wilderness, campsite, afternoon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
For a fall day it was almost perfect (Please note that this definition of a perfect day is merely the author's idea of what some would consider a perfect day and by no means is any reflection of what a perfect day really is. As a matter of fact, the author is a very strange and twisted person and prefers cold overcast days with no hint of sun or sunlight anywhere to what is about to be described. As such he will understand if some readers disagree with the following description.).  
  
The sun was shining brightly with a scattering of clouds here and there. The air was almost perfect, the humidity was just right, it was hot, but not overly oppressive in its heat, and there was a nice cool breeze blowing through the trees causing a slight rustling and swaying in the foliage.  
  
The Two martial artists whom, to a casual observer appeared to be in the process of killing each other, were training. To a more interested observer, considering the impressive martial arts performance the two were giving there would be few disinterested enough not to fall into this category, the two appeared to be going through a very intense sparring match.  
  
In actuality the pair of individuals in question were having the time of their lives. Although, their decision to sleep in earlier could give the sparring session a run for its money in that department.  
  
Akane stepped back from her fiancée, dropping her hands to her sides in an unspoken symbol. Ranma at seeing the signal to take a break likewise stepped back and dropped out of his stance.  
  
"Want something to drink?" Akane asked, retrieving their canteens from where they lay, also picking up two towels.  
  
"Sure that sounds great."  
  
Akane threw both a canteen and towel at Ranma, who deftly caught them without a thought.  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"No problem."  
  
The two went over to a newly fallen tree that Akane had recently felled when she made sure she could still perform the Kachyu Tenshin Amaguriken. As the evidence suggested, she was definitely still capable of performing it.  
  
The couple sat down against the fallen tree's trunk, Akane sitting at a slight angle so as to rest against Ranma's body as well as the tree. Ranma had no problem with this and shifted slightly so as to allow his fiancée to be more comfortable.  
  
"I can't believe how slow I used to be." Akane complained, rotating her shoulder and stretching slightly so as to work out some knots.  
  
"Neither can I, I'm amazed I survived with my body as weak and slow as this, but then again, that's why we're here, to make sure our bodies are more prepared for when the rest of the insanity arrives."  
  
"Well the others weren't that strong at the beginning either Ranma, so with our improved technique we'll have an even easier time then before. I mean even you yourself said that I was skilled enough to take on Shampoo and most likely win."  
  
"That's not good enough Akane, I want you to be able to beat Shampoo without breaking a sweat. Then there's Cologne, if we can't get rid of Shampoo the right way, then there's a chance Cologne will show up, and I'm not sure how good she was or is. I'd rather keep her out of this if at all possible. With all the magic, herbs, and other strange tricks she has the chances of something happening are much greater."  
  
"First things first, Ryoga is the first one to arrive." Akane began to fume at the thought of Ryoga.  
  
"Yeah, he is the first one we have to deal with. If at all possible, I'd like to find some way to make peace with him so he won't be constantly attacking me screaming, 'Ranma prepare to die.'"  
  
"That pervert, why would you want any help from him after all the abuse he put you and me through, all the problems he caused, and all the trouble he was responsible for? I think it's best for you to just beat him into a pulp every time you see him, eventually he'll get the idea."  
  
"True, but out of all the others, Ryoga was the strongest, he was the only one who consistently gave me a challenge. If we had him as an ally, it would be a lot easier and safer to take on any threats, which will come."  
  
"Ranma, Ryoga tried to kill you on several occasions."  
  
Ranma shook his head resolutely.  
  
"He was never serious about killing me, he just wanted a fight."  
  
"That's not true, what about his breaking point attack, he tried to hit you with it. He didn't know it wouldn't work on you and he went full out trying to hit you with it. I saw what it did to those rocks he was hit with. If it worked on you as it did on those rocks there would have been no, 'oops, sorry Ranma, I didn't mean too.' You would have been dead and no amount of apologies would have changed that."  
  
"I believe we should forgive everyone for what hasn't happened yet and for what did happen. It wouldn't be right to hold a grudge against any of them for actions which they may not even commit."  
  
"Does that include what has happened between the two of us until now?"  
  
"Akane, I've always forgiven you for everything, I just hope you can also forgive me for all of the stupid things I've done up to this point."  
  
Akane put her hand on his cheek.  
  
"How could I not forgive you my love? I mean, are you even capable of bearing a grudge?"  
  
Ranma laughed slightly at the question, but after a moment's contemplation became quite serious and began to frown as one individual came to his mind.  
  
"Usually no, but there are always exceptions to every rule, and I think can think of one old lecherous pervert who needs to be taught a lesson."  
  
Akane's mirth also drained away as realization dawned on her of just who Ranma was thinking of, Akane's expression grew even darker than it had been when she was thinking of Ryoga.  
  
"Death would be too merciful for that pervert, just how exactly are we going to deal with him?"  
  
"I'm not sure yet, I've mostly been thinking about the fiancées and rivals, but I promise you this. Even if I have to kill him the lech will not trouble us for long. After all that he has done to us I find I can't even consider forgiving him."  
  
Ranma's words cast Akane's thoughts were cast back to all that Happosai had put the two of them through, all his groping, all his abuse, all his schemes, all his pettiness. While she was usually a kind person, on the inside at least, and forgave people pretty quickly, she found no shred of forgiveness anywhere in her being for the perverted founder of the anything goes school.  
  
She turned to look Ranma straight in the eyes; her chocolate brown orbs meeting Ranma's own grey-blue eyes.  
  
"Ranma, I also promise you this, as you killed to save me, I would kill to save you. If that means ending the unnatural life of one old pervert then I am willing to live with that."  
  
The incident at Jusendo where Ranma had killed Saffron, a demi-god to save Akane's life came back to Ranma. Although he'd deny it if anyone pointed it out he became somewhat misty eyed.  
  
"I'll never let anyone take you away from me Akane and nothing will ever take me away from you."  
  
"Ohhhh Ranma, is it possible to fall in love with someone you're already in love with?"  
  
Akane had meant it as a rhetorical question, but surprisingly received an answer.  
  
"Yes Akane it is, and I should know."  
  
"Huh, I thought you said you fell in love with me when we first met."  
  
"I did, then later when the lech first came and our fathers tried to make me bow to him and be subservient to him I refused. They kicked me out of the house rather then risk his childish revenge. Remember that?"  
  
"Yes I do, you refused to wear a bra like he wanted you to."  
  
"Well when I was sitting in that lot camping out in the cold, I was really unhappy about being kicked out and felt kinda depressed. Then out of nowhere this you came with some food and drink for me, all bundled up and ready to stay with me if need be and we came up with that plan to get the old pervert back. Suddenly after you got there everything was much better and my depression went away. I now realize why I was so depressed."  
  
Ranma had slipped his arms around Akane and was holding her to him, she was leaning back contently into him.  
  
"It wasn't that I had been kicked out of a nice place to stay, I had gotten used to that over the years and had slept in a lot of worse places than that tent in the lot. It wasn't even that I was without pop, at a young age I had gotten used to relying on myself. It was you Akane, having you there with me made me feel so right and so much better. Not having pop, Nabiki, your dad, Kasumi, or even Kasumi's cooking were nothing compared to not being able to be around you. I think at that point I fell in love with you all over again and nothing anyone else did could change that fact."  
  
Akane felt herself flush at the memory. When Happosai had first come the two of them had refused to give any ground to the old pervert, although Akane had been tempted to give in just so she could be rid of him, but not Ranma, Ranma would never bow to anyone. They had refused to give in to the pervert and eventually sent him packing; they always sent him packing whenever he tried something.  
  
"For a time," she murmured softly, but not softly enough to escape Ranma's sharp ears.  
  
"What do you mean by that Akane?"  
  
"I was just thinking about how whenever we'd get rid of that old pervert, he would always come back with some new scheme or some new problem."  
  
"Like Pantyhose Taro?"  
  
"Exactly, we'd get rid of him, but it would never be enough, he'd always come back and we'd have to set whatever he did wrong right again. Like those magnetically charged pills that were making you subservient to him, the moxibustion of weakness, or the personality splitter incense."  
  
A sob escaped Akane at the memory, causing Ranma to tighten his arms around her.  
  
"You never gave in, but a couple of times I came so close to losing you, once to him, once to weakness, and once to yourself. Then there were all the others things he did to us. Trying to make you or me love him, trying to keep you as a girl, all the other things. I can't take it again; we have to stop him before he can do it to us. I don't care what we have to do as long as we stop that monster before.before he can kill us again."  
  
Tears slid down Akane's cheeks as she cried. Ranma began to rock slightly making soothing sounds.  
  
"Don't worry Akane, I promise you we'll deal with him when he comes along."  
  
'I know Ranma, I know, but I can't help but worry."  
  
The two just sat there in contemplative silence for a while, both content in the other's embrace.  
  
"Well Akane, we had better get back to our training if we are going to beat them."  
  
"You're on Ranma."  
  
With their brief breather and conversation completed. Neither really felt like continuing talking about such a depressing topic as dealing with the one responsible for their deaths.  
  
As such, the pair threw themselves into their training with great gusto and vigor, trying to forget their troubles in the art they loved so much.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wilderness, campsite, late evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
The two martial artists had kept training for the rest of the day non-stop, Ranma putting Akane and himself through constant speed and endurance training. After the conversation they had during their first break, neither fiancée had struck up much conversation during any of the other breaks they took.  
  
It wasn't until dinner that night that the two had resumed their discussion. Ranma had cooked dinner that night with surprisingly little complaint from Akane. She was too tired to object forcefully, that and she didn't particularly want to go through the trouble of cooking that night.  
  
After the massage Ranma had given her, she was too relaxed to want to trouble herself or her relaxed body with the hardships of cooking. Subconsciously, she also knew that the two of them would sleep much better if they ate Ranma's cooking, not that she'd ever tell him that.  
  
"Ughh, my body feels like it's made out of lead" Akane groused as she lay on their shared sleeping tent. Ranma had asked her if she had wanted to change their sleeping arrangements for that night. Akane had gotten slightly irritated at him, assuming that he didn't like the sleeping arrangements.  
  
Thankfully Ranma had managed to explain what he really meant to Akane's satisfaction before mallet-sama had finished descending and was spared Akane's wrath. Akane had then told Ranma that she liked them as they were, seductively suggesting they might even wear a little less than they did the previous night. Ranma had flushed at the suggestion, but didn't object.  
  
Ranma was outside the tent at that moment cleaning the utensils they had used for dinner and disposing the trash, there was no leftover food to dispose of seeing as the appetites of the two fiancées was more then sufficient to consume their meal.  
  
With the cleanup done Ranma joined his fiancée in their shared tent and lay down on his sleeping bag beside his fiancée. Akane in turn pulled her sleeping bag over the two of them to act as a blanket.  
  
Under their shared covers Ranma's arms snaked around his fiancée as she rested her head upon his chest, taking in his scent and marveling at just how comfortable he was.  
  
For both martial artists, all the hardships and troubles of the day seemed to melt seeming small and far away as Ranma held Akane to him.  
  
"I could stay like this forever." Akane said, moving so she practically lay on top of her fiancée.  
  
"I couldn't agree more, everything and everyone else seem so far away at this point, so unimportant. All that I care about I have in my arms." Ranma adjusted his body as he spoke to better allow for his fiancée's movements. Akane seemed to stir at Ranma's comment.  
  
"What about our families and friends?"  
  
"Akane as far as families go I didn't exactly get a good pick. My father is a man, who would sell or engage his son many times over to feed his own stomach, beat his child if he showed emotions, starved his child, threw his only son into a pit of starving cats wrapped in fish products, and forced me to hide from my own mother after taking and cursing me."  
  
Akane heard Ranma's voice begin to break as he reached the nekoken training. She had always known Ranma never had an easy childhood, but she had tried not to think about it before knowing it was even now breaking her heart to think of the man she loved in so much pain, but Ranma still wasn't done.  
  
"Then there's my mother, oh god, I had to hide from my own mother because she might want to take my life if she found out about something that happened to me that I have no control over, then after the lies were told it was too late, I couldn't face telling her the truth over who I really was, it hurt us both so much and I never realized just how much it hurt till now."  
  
Another sob tore at Ranma, making Akane's heart wrench even more. Looking up at him in the pale moonlight she noticed that even with this much pain he refused to allow himself to cry. Ranma was fighting back tears with every word he had spoken. She moved her head up and placed a feather light kiss on his lips.  
  
"Ranma, that was the other future, it doesn't have to happen that way this time. When your mother does come we will explain the situation right from the start this time and things will be fine. As for your father, that part of your life is over Ranma, he can't force you into anything else. Just remember that even without them you will have me and I will always be there for you whenever you need me."  
  
Ranma looked down at Akane, awe, wonder, and love written clearly across his face.  
  
"Akane."  
  
"Yes Ranma?"  
  
"I think I just fell in love with you again."  
  
Akane laughed softly before returning her head to her pillow, namely Ranma's chest.  
  
"I love you too, now maybe we should get some sleep for tomorrow."  
  
"Ok love."  
  
"Sleep well Ranma."  
  
"You too Akane, and may flights of angels sing thee too thy rest."  
  
"I'm sure you will."  
  
The two were shortly asleep.  
  
Ten yards away from their camp a figure walked onwards, his pace steady and determined, his course taking him steadily forwards. He never noticed the last dying embers from the campfire a certain pigtailed martial artist had extinguished not too long ago.  
  
"Ranma Saotome, because of you I've seen hell, the time for your demise draws close. Prepare yourself."  
  
With those words spoken the dark figure continued walking onwards towards his goal.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"Well, I must say that was a close call" The cloaked figure turned to look at the seated one, wiping a drop of sweat from its brow as it turned.  
  
"A little bit more of a push and he would have stumbled straight onto them. Slightly disappointing wouldn't you agree." The seated figure sighed.  
  
"Ahh yes, but they say patience is a virtue and I do believe it is too early for him to make an appearance in this little drama we have unfolding."  
  
"So what are you going to do about him?"  
  
"Nothing for now, but eventually I'll get around to working on him." The seated figure promised.  
  
"So what are you going to do about this situation until then, those two seem to be getting quite close to each other?"  
  
"I'm not sure, I'm tempted to allow the god slayer and his mate to continue as they are, she also has a lot of potential and would be a good match for the god slayer. I'm tempted to bring her into the fold as well."  
  
The cloaked figure regarded its seated companion with a quizzical look.  
  
"Trying to take both of Loki's chosen. If I weren't so sure that you are in your right state of mind at current, I'd swear you had finally gone insane. Loki would never stand idly by while you tried to take his two favored for your own purposes. You know as well as I do that he loves watching the chaos that surrounds them and often assists in it. If he finds someone is messing with them he'll be pretty angry."  
  
"I will worry about that problem when we get to it, but at the moment all that concerns me is making sure the god slayer becomes what he is destined to be. If that means allowing this chosen mate to remain at his side longer then so be it, but should it prove prudent to break the bonds that these two share, I will not hesitate to act. Their happiness is second place to destiny."  
  
"So you would defy the will of a majority of greater gods, lesser gods, demon lords, demons, and spirits. Just because you believe in this destiny, you are taking a rather large risk."  
  
"Do you doubt in what this young man's destiny may hold." The seated figure stood up, armor and stalked over to face the cloaked figure, its blue eyes glinting dangerously as if reinforcing the validity of its claim.  
  
"Not at all, but destiny is not set in stone nor is it always to come to pass as has been foretold. It is a fluid entity, in and of itself and will come as it needs to be." The darkness from under the cloaked figure's hood was too deep to see its eyes as it spoke.  
  
"Then there is no problem with us giving it a few gentle nudges in the right direction."  
  
"I've seen more gentle nudges from Thor and his hammer compared to what you have been doing. You know as well as I do that you walk a dangerous path."  
  
"True, but with the god slayer at my side things will progress much more smoothly. After he took care of that demi-god upstart Saffron, do you have any idea how many beings wanted him disposed of. I'm amazed he and his fiancée were brought back in time."  
  
"Loki always has been a very persuasive being, with the other chaos deities backing him rather than there usual infighting they stood a very good chance of getting their way, and they did." The cloaked figure smiled in admiration at the thought of Loki's threatened Armageddon.  
  
"That's right isn't it, if I was one who was akin to praying I might thank Loki, but since I'm not, I'll just have to thank the god slayer instead."  
  
The armored figure began to laugh at its own statement.  
  
The cloaked figure for the sake of continuity joined in.  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, END OF CHAPTER 7 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: So ends another chapter of the story. Except for chapter one, I think this is the most serious chapter I've written yet. I am slightly displeased with how little humour I could bring into it, but it seemed to work better with a more serious tone and many of these topics were things I wasn't willing to make light of them. Incidentally, this also happens to be my longest chapter and required more work then the others. While I enjoy writing I believe I received less fun writing this chapter then the others. This probably had to do with the lack of humor. I am trying to keep this light and enjoyable rather then too deep and heavy. Although I will warn you that there may be some more chapters as emotional if not more so than this one. We will just have to wait and see what happens.  
  
Who will be the next rival/fiancée/challenge to show up and face the two of them? They still have three more days in which to practice and prepare, or will they encounter another challenge on their journey. Will the training trip end next chapter or will it continue on for a good three more chapters.  
  
How will the story progress from here, who among you besides me knows or suspects what will happen? What will happen to our heroes now that they are alone with each other and sharing their feelings without interruption?  
  
More clues, more secrets, and more mystery come from the two figures. Maybe soon their identity will be revealed, and what is the armoured figure's agenda with Ranma. Most of all just how exactly are these two manipulating the two and the people around them. These two will have more lines and a larger part of the story as it goes along, who knows soon I may even reveal their name.  
  
Let me know how this chapter has turned out. Please Read and Review. I welcome your comments, criticism, and all manner of responses, although I really don't like the flames that much. I must say that I am also grateful to know so many people are reading this fanfic and are seemingly enjoying it.  
  
If you'd like to get in touch with me and have me respond please E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	8. A Time to Live

One Last Chance ch.8  
  
**** A Time to Live ****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter the couple went on a training trip together to get themselves up to speed. In the process, they got closer together and discussed what would happen. Ryoga also narrowly missed running into them by just a few dozen yards.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, noon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
The wilds of Japan are a peaceful and calm place. Compared to the crowded cities the wilderness offers a quiet tranquility where one can escape the hustle of life and its hardships of modern life.  
  
Many people do escape to the woods where they can rest and relax away from the rest of Japan. Many people lay back and enjoy the sights and sounds of the wilderness. They appreciate the pristine beauty of the forest and try to leave it as nice as possible for other people.  
  
Ranma and Akane are not two of these people. This is very apparent as one of Akane's stray punches hit a tree, which never did any harm to anybody. The oak was very thick and had grown for many years and was solid enough to resist many strokes with an axe. Akane had pulled her punch as soon as she saw it was going to miss Ranma.  
  
The tree never stood a chance. The tree's only mistake was to grow in the wrong location. None of this mattered as the tree fell though. As a matter of fact, Akane never even paid attention to the falling tree as she already had turned away, raising an arm to block one of Ranma's kicks.  
  
The two were training for all they were worth and nothing could distract the pair of martial artists from their sparring, not even a falling tree that Ranma evaded without thought as he was pushed back by a flurry of blows from Akane could break their concentration.  
  
Sweat poured from both of them as they trained relentlessly. The two, having enjoyed the company of their partner during the night were very unwilling to risk loosing their bedmate. As a result, today's training session was even more rigourous than the previous day's training.  
  
Ranma dodged around like he usually did, but unlike his original arrival a few days/ 2 years ago, he would occasionally throw a punch or a kick at Akane whenever he saw a hole in her defenses. When his strikes did pierce her defenses, the blow would sting Akane slightly, not enough to really hurt her, but powerful enough to remind her not to let her defenses down.  
  
The blows he dealt to her were almost as painful to Ranma as they were to Akane. The difference between their pains though was in where the damage was dealt. Akane's pain was felt in her skin, flesh, and bones. Ranma's pain was felt in his very self. Every pain he caused Akane hurt him too, because he knew he was the one who was causing Akane to suffer. Even though he knew it was necessary for her training and that he had to do it to make her better, it didn't help the pain it caused inside him.  
  
Akane knew that Ranma loved training her, but hated hitting her even though she could take it. So she decided to call a break by dropping out of her stance. It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact Ranma's last strike had put her in a bad position. It definitely had nothing to do with the fact that her body was beginning to ache from the training they were doing and had done. It most assuredly had no correlation to how she wanted nothing more than him to hold her and give her the massage she was dieing for. Finally and without a doubt or any chance in hell was the matter of calling a break because she was tired.  
  
Or at least that she'd be willing to admit.  
  
Akane began the first real conversation the two had held that day about anything besides martial arts or combat.  
  
"You're good Ranma Saotome, you are worthy of a truly strong, skilled, and gifted wife to call your own." Akane said, leading Ranma towards the recently fallen tree, which had thankfully missed falling on their canteens by a very narrow margin.  
  
"And you, Akane Tendo, are also worthy of a strong, skilled, and gifted husband to call your own."  
  
"Really, do you know where I can find one?" Akane asked with a coy smile.  
  
"I think I might have a few ideas."  
  
"Oh really?"  
  
"Yes and where might that be?" It was fun to tease Ranma, but it was even more fun when he didn't get flustered and he actively participated in the fun.  
  
"Right here," he said, taking her hand and placing it upon his chest, right over his heart. An almost electric tingle ran through her body at the feel of her hand over his pectoral muscles. She could feel his every breath and it excited her, but she was about as willing to admit that, as she was her reasons for taking a break.  
  
"And you shall find your own companion right here." Akane replied, reaching out and taking Ranma's hand. She put it over her own heart, knowing Ranma was both too shy and too much of a gentleman to do anything further without her guiding him. Of course he'd never be able to admit to his shyness. In as long as Akane had known Ranma, she had always been forced to make the first move in any physical contact. It was slightly irritating, but Akane knew that after she opened each door for him he would be willing to enter the places she left open for him and only him.  
  
"Have I told you today how much I love you?" Ranma asked, staring into Akane's eyes.  
  
"Not since last night."  
  
"That's too long a time for it then."  
  
Akane waited a few moments to hear his words, but they didn't come."  
  
"Well?" She asked impatiently.  
  
"Well what?" Ranma asked innocently.  
  
"Well aren't you going to say it?"  
  
"Say what?"  
  
Akane was getting irritated at his playing dumb.  
  
"I love you."  
  
"Thanks, I love you too."  
  
Akane blinked in shock at how Ranma had gotten her to say the words she was trying to have him say. Only he managed to make her say the words before he did.  
  
"Why you, I oughta." Akane growled.  
  
Ranma stuck out his tongue in response.  
  
"What have I told you Ranma, don't stick that thing out unless you're willing to use it."  
  
"Make me."  
  
"Ok."  
  
The two engaged in a passionate kiss, at least until they realized that they both needed more oxygen then they were receiving and had to break the kiss.  
  
"You know, I think the nature has to hate us by now?"  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"Well so far, I've destroyed two mountains, and together we've destroyed god only knows how many trees and other bits of foliage together."  
  
Akane laughed at Ranma's comment, knowing it to be true.  
  
"That's true Ranma, but at the same time contractors love us for all the work we give them. Just think of how much property damage there is in Nerima."  
  
"You're right Akane, we need to talk to Nabiki into investing in some of those stocks when we get back. Maybe that way she'll be less inclined to sell pictures of us."  
  
"Not all of those pictures were bad you know. Some of them were actually quite tasteful."  
  
"Yeah I know, just don't expect me to admit that too Nabiki."  
  
"That's fine as long as you admit it to me and yourself." Akane sounded quite content with Ranma's admission.  
  
"Do you think we should talk about strategy some more?" Ranma asked Akane, looking for another conversation piece.  
  
"No, not today Ranma, today, I don't want anything to spoil today, and I just know talking about the others will spoil today for us."  
  
"Ok Akane, if that's what you want then why don't we go back to training."  
  
"Sounds good to me." It actually didn't sound that good to her, she wanted to stay where they were and have Ranma put his arms around her and sit there just enjoying his strong warm arms holding her to his hard body.  
  
Ranma stood up, holding out his hand. Akane took the offered hand and reluctantly stood. The two stepped into the middle of the clearing and prepared to fight.  
  
In all actuality the clearing they were sparring in was a very new clearing that the two had inadvertently made while they were practicing. Fallen trees were all over the place. At the end of their workout Ranma and Akane would strip a tree, with their bare hands, chop it up into manageable pieces, they split the tree in two, once again with their bare hands, and then carry the halves back to camp, they also did this with their bare hands. Once back at camp the pair would then see who could turn their half of the tree into decently sized firewood. If you hadn't guessed by now from the previous three actions involving the tree, they did this with their bare hands as well.  
  
"Ready to begin Akane?"  
  
"Whenever you are Ranma"  
  
The two leapt at each other and their sparring began.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On a road in Osaka ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
On a road in the middle of Osaka stood two people talking, if talking is what you could call it. One guy was asking for directions and the other was trying to help.  
  
The first guy was getting frustrated, the person he was talking too wasn't giving him very good directions and as a result he ended up starting to go the wrong way.  
  
"So you're saying Nerima is that way?"  
  
The second guy was getting even more frustrated than the first, when the first guy had asked for directions he had then tried to go off in the wrong direction. What was wrong with this guy?  
  
"Yes for the fifth time, honestly, for someone who is so desperate to get to Tokyo, you sure don't want to go the right way."  
  
Three guesses as too who the first guy is and the first two don't count. For those of you who are having trouble with guessing, he is wearing a yellow bandana, has fangs, and carries a red umbrella. If you don't know whom the first guy is, go out and read the manga or watch the anime, because your knowledge of the series is sorely lacking.  
  
"I'm deadly serious, I have to get to Tokyo for revenge."  
  
"Revenge huh? Well that's original, why are you out for revenge and against whom?"  
  
"A coward, because of him I've seen hell."  
  
"Hell huh, that's a pretty bad place from what I've heard. So once again who is this guy?"  
  
"Ranma Saotome. I'm going to kill him for what he's done to me."  
  
Ryoga would have continued talking except the other boy had his arms in a very powerful grip and was squeezing very hard, not enough to hurt Ryoga, but it was quite a bit stronger than any normal person. The exceptions to this were some crazy people, they were normal people, to an extent, but they were super strong. Ryoga had encountered a couple of these on his journeys, but the boy in front of him didn't seem to be crazy. As a matter of fact the look in his eye was the same one Ryoga had seen in his own a few times whenever he was thinking of Ranma and what he'd do to the coward when they met.  
  
Now whether or not this can be considered a crazy look is just a matter of how sane a person is. To a very sane person yes this look might be crazy; to another no it wouldn't be considered crazy. Judge for yourself their actions then make up your judgment. As for the author, well the author himself has been accused of having a less than perfect hold on his own sanity so he won't be making a call one way or another.  
  
"Ranma Saotome? Did you just say Ranma Saotome? Ranma Saotome as in the Ranma Saotome of the anything goes school of martial arts? Ranma Saotome as in the son of Genma Saotome?"  
  
While the figure asked four questions they all could be summed up in one reply, which Ryoga promptly proceeded to do.  
  
"Umm, yes."  
  
The guy in front of him smiled a very predatory smile.  
  
"Well in that case why don't I come with you, I also have to find Ranma Saotome, and I have my own revenge to carry out against him, why don't we help each other?"  
  
"That sounds ok to me, if you're sure, I wouldn't mind some company."  
  
"Ok, let's get going, I can't wait to finally get my shot at Ranma."  
  
The second figure was so caught up in his thoughts of revenge he didn't notice the fact that Ryoga was going in the wrong direction. He followed Ryoga without a second thought to their actual destination.  
  
Ryoga walked along, angry with Ranma for the trouble he caused everyone. He was also too caught up in his thoughts of punishing the pigtailed martial artist to notice where he was going. This really didn't matter because even if he had thought about where he was going and how to get there he would have gone the wrong way. A part of his mind told him that since his new traveling companion hadn't told him that they were going the wrong way, they must have been going the right way.  
  
Together the two walked off, taking them further and further away from the target of their aggression. Whether they were better off doing this than they would have been otherwise is debatable. On one hand they were going further away from Ranma so they couldn't attack him. On the other hand they were going further away from Ranma so they wouldn't have to fight him.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, mid-evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane had finished up their workout, and were hiking back to the campsite after their training that day. Both of them were exhausted and famished. Akane was trailing slightly after Ranma.  
  
"Ranma, prepare to die." A voice yelled from somewhere behind him.  
  
"Huh?" Ranma was startled by the sudden challenge, he cursed himself for not expecting trouble to find them even out here.  
  
He twirled around, dropping into a fighting stance and dropping the half of the tree that he was carrying. His eyes searched the area around him searching for whoever made the challenge.  
  
All he saw was Akane, holding her sides as she tried to stifle her laughter.  
  
"And what was that for?" Ranma asked, quirking an eyebrow at his fiancée.  
  
"Well, I thought you might be missing it since no one has yelled that particular phrase at you lately." Akane was trying very hard not to burst out laughing.  
  
"Thanks, but that's one part of it all I think I could live without. In fact I know I can live without all those challenges."  
  
" I hope so Ranma, but I have a feeling that even after we deal with the others of the Nerima wrecking crew showing up, we will still have to deal with the usual insanity of our lives. I don't think it will stop any time during our lives; all the chaos that follows us around won't ever stop, and since we'll be together it will get even worse."  
  
"Nerima Wrecking Crew? Our chaos? I don't understand." Ranma looked quite confused.  
  
"Try asking one question at a time Ranma, it will be a lot easier to answer your questions that way. Otherwise it might get a little confusing."  
  
Ranma felt like slamming his head against one of the nearby trees, but he figured they already had enough trees knocked down to make a house so he merely put his face into his hands and groaned loudly.  
  
Akane giggled for a moment before coming up and taking Ranma's hand. She led him back to their campsite. Anyone watching the two would have sworn off strong drink after seeing a teenage boy and teenage girl holding hands while carrying halves of a tree over their shoulders. Ranma contemplated quietly over what Akane said on their walk back to camp, letting Akane lead him. He was only marginally successful in contemplation.  
  
Who knew Akane would of sweated that much or her clothes would cling to her body like that, or that her body was so finely toned and how perfect her . . . WOOO there Ranma, think about something else. Showers. Cold showers. Cold showers at home. Cold showers at home with Akane. Cold Showers with Akane naked. Cold showers with Akane naked and. WOOOO, bad Ranma, think about anything else besides Akane and how beautiful Akane looks and how Akane. ARGGGHH.   
  
"ARRGGGHH."  
  
"Is there something wrong Ranma?" Akane asked, looking at Ranma curiously.  
  
Ranma for his part was blushing furiously as he realized that he yelled out loud.  
  
"Well I was just thinking . . . um . . . What did you mean Nerima Wrecking Crew. Who or what is that?"  
  
"Well it's funny really I once heard somebody refer to us as the Nerima wrecking crew."  
  
"Us, who is us?"  
  
"You, me, Ryoga, Kuno, Shampoo, and the others. After all the property damage we did we got the title of the Nerima Wrecking Crew. I think it's rather appropriate."  
  
Ranma chuckled at the name.  
  
"Yeah, that is a pretty appropriate title for us."  
  
"Now Ranma, have you thought of how to ask your other question yet?"  
  
"Huh, oh yeah, when you were talking about all the chaos that surrounded us, what did you mean us, don't you mean me?"  
  
"Not really, it's true that things got really crazy since you showed up, but even before you arrived things were strange in my life. Remember the Hentai horde, that was just the tip of the iceberg, all my life things have been a little off the norm, after you showed up the things got worse, but it wasn't all you."  
  
"Say that sounds about right, during my trip with pops, crazy things were happening all the time. When I got here things were calm for a little while, but then the craziness just picked up harder then ever. I always thought it was just because I was in one place this time, and things were just picking up. Now that you mention it, it would make sense, the chaos around the two of us combining. I guess we really are compatible."  
  
They both laughed at that. They would have embraced, but the huge logs on their shoulders made that action impossible.  
  
The two walked back to camp side by side this time.  
  
Arriving in camp they dropped of the tree and turned it into kindling for the fire.  
  
Ranma offered to cook, much to both of their relief. Akane was too tired to really cook and Ranma didn't want an incredibly bad case of indigestion that night.  
  
After dinner, they went down to the stream to wash up. Akane lay on a towel Ranma spread out while he gave her a massage.  
  
"You have magic fingers you know that don't you?" Akane asked, her muscles relaxing under his loving touch.  
  
"Yeah I know."  
  
"You have great technique."  
  
"Yeah, I know."  
  
"You have such a kind touch."  
  
"Yeah, I know."  
  
"And an ego the size of a planet."  
  
"Yeah, I - hey what do you mean."  
  
Akane laughed, rolling over and wrapping Ranma in a hug.  
  
"That's ok, I still love you."  
  
Ranma stood up, gathering Akane in his arms he headed for their shared tent.  
  
"Ohh Ranma, you're so forceful." Akane giggled as Ranma carried her.  
  
"You know you like it." Ranma growled as he tossed her over one shoulder so he could use his free hand to open the tent.  
  
Akane just giggled as he brought her into the tent, zipping the flap shut behind them.  
  
"I love you Ranma."  
  
"I love you too Akane."  
  
Holding each other the exhausted couple fell asleep.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"So you see Tendo, we can't allow them to go at this rate, the schools must be united."  
  
"I agree with you Saotome, we have to get them married, but why the rush. The two of them are obviously in favor of marrying; they just don't want to be together yet. Why can't we give them a little time?"  
  
"Soun my old friend, you know how these things are, yes they love each other now, but we never know when that might change. We can't allow them to break apart."  
  
Also we need to get them together before any of the other girls who he got engaged too show up and try to claim him. Why must a father be so troubled by a disobedient son?   
  
Genma had been working on Soun since the two had woken up. He suspected what would happen if the other girls he had engaged Ranma too over the years showed up before Ranma was married.  
  
He considered himself lucky that those other two fiancées that showed up were ones he and Soun had both been responsible for. Soun would have no idea just how many fiancées Ranma had. As a matter of fact Genma himself didn't know how many fiancées he had given Ranma over the years.  
  
"So you see Tendo, the boy and your daughter must be married, it is the only safe thing we can do."  
  
In the past, Genma had always been able to talk Soun into things, since Kimiko's death he had been even easier to manipulate. This time was no different.  
  
"Yes Saotome, I understand. Our children don't understand the problems their delay is causing we must show them the error of their ways."  
  
"Together we can do it Tendo."  
  
The two stood up and clasped arms the way one warrior would do with another.  
  
"Now my friend let us plan," the two said in unison.  
  
Outside the dojo two females figures just looked at each other, shaking their heads as they listened to the two men inside.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mainland China ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Two figures were engaged in a very heated discussion. If one looked carefully, it could be seen that these two appeared in an earlier part of the chapter.  
  
"I can't believe you, how the hell could you get us this badly lost?"  
  
"You didn't say anything about the way we were going."  
  
"I was lost in my thoughts, I can't even find us anywhere on the map." The person gestures to the now useless map of Japan that he was holding.  
  
"Don't worry about maps, I found they really aren't that useful." Ryoga said, waving his hand dismissively.  
  
"Then how the hell are we meant to know where we are?"  
  
Ryoga shrugged, "simple, we just look for any landmarks that are familiar. Trust me."  
  
"Ok, lead the way, but I swear if we don't find something familiar soon then I'm going to start leading, I'm not even sure if we're still in Japan."  
  
"Of course we are. We haven't even had to cross any large body of water yet."  
  
The two went off, heading for Mongolia.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Arggh I can't believe those three."  
  
If the armoured figure had any hair it would be pulling it out in frustration. Things weren't going to plan.  
  
"I can't believe this."  
  
"Why don't you calm down? Your pacing is somewhat irritating."  
  
The armoured figure forced itself to stop pacing and glare at the cloaked figure.  
  
"My apologies, but things aren't going as they should be."  
  
"You're talking about Ryoga and the fathers?"  
  
"No I'm talking about Charon, Styx, and Cerberus. Of course I'm talking about Ryoga and the fathers. They're screwing things up. How the hell did Ryoga meet up with a companion? That shouldn't have happened."  
  
"I think it might have had to do with your influence."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Well, to keep Ryoga from running into Ranma and Akane you had to adjust his path. With Ryoga's sense of direction, that small alteration completely threw off his path, therefore it was impossible for the anybody to predict where he was going to go."  
  
The armoured figure had stopped pacing by one of the obsidian walls and was in the process of beating its head against the walls, causing small cracks to appear in the black stone.  
  
"Why are you irritated at the fathers anyway, they always pull this type of stunt?"  
  
The armoured figure stopped beating its head against the wall to answer the cloaked figure.  
  
"Those two always find a way to interfere, no matter what being has tried a plan that involves Ranma and Akane, those two old farts have always sprung one of their own plans at the same time and the two plans always fail because of the other."  
  
"Let me guess, as far as you know, you're the only one with a plan going on right now?"  
  
"Right, Loki is the only other one that has something going on with them, but he always has something going on that deals with those two."  
  
"Well, maybe this time it will affect Loki's plan."  
  
"Loki is pure chaos, it has no chance of affecting Loki's plan."  
  
"Well maybe we could kill them?"  
  
"Killing their fathers would definitely turn the godslayer and his mate away from us and make him an enemy I would rather not have. Besides, Genma is in Mask's favor, it would be foolish to provoke him. I rather value my property, and Mask could rapidly make me loose many of the items I've collected."  
  
"True, but at least Genma's a fat slob that nobody, but that woman Nodoka would find attractive, and even then, she only likes him because of that stupid bet."  
  
The armoured figure laughed at the cloaked figures words.  
  
"Now that's a note I'm willing to end on."  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, END OF CHAPTER 8 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: Another year, another chapter. This chapter was a lot more fun to write then the previous one, especially since I got to include more humour then before.  
  
I hope everyone is enjoying this story. If you are, then please review and tell me what you thought of this, I am always searching for comments on my writing and how I can improve it. If you have anything to say at all, please review.  
  
A quick note, Mask is the god of thieves from the Forgotten Realms Dungeons and Dragons series.  
  
As for the gods I will be including. I have studied Greek, Norse, Egyptian, Celtic, and Roman mythology. I also know a little about Chinese and Japanese legends. As a result, I will be including figures from all of these. In addition to those, I read a lot of forgotten realms books and I will be including the pantheons from that into the story.  
  
Now, just who is the person with Ryoga, so many possibilities, so little time.  
  
Hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	9. A Time to Love

One Last Chance ch.9  
  
**** A Time to Love ****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter the couple went on a training trip together to get themselves up to speed. In the process, they got closer together and trained. Ryoga encountered another guy on the road who is also after Ranma for some reason. The two of them teamed up to find Ranma and went off together, but with Ryoga leading, so we won't see them for a while . . .probably. Genma and Soun began to plan on how to get Ranma and Akane married now that they are in love. Kuno may or may not have been released from the nurse's bed he was strapped too. We'll just have to see, now on with the new chapter.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Come on love, we've got to get up and train." Ranma said, stroking Akane's hair.  
  
"Do we have too?" His chest was so comfortable, why couldn't he just let her lie in on him for once. It felt so good just to lay here. It wasn't that she was sore from the previous two days, not at all.  
  
Just because whenever she moved a muscle she felt the pain of the two previous days didn't mean she wasn't willing to train that day, but it was a very good reason to stay in bed.  
  
Ranma for his part was willing to agree with Akane in this department if she asked him. His body wasn't used to quite this much work. Well at least not this old body of his. If Akane asked him to just lie in bed for that day, he'd probably agree with her.  
  
"Ranma, do you think you can give me a massage, I'm still sore from yesterday, my body is killing me."  
  
"Yeah, I understand what you mean Akane, I'm pretty sore as well, I think we might have overdone it over the last couple of days. These bodies really aren't in that great a shape."  
  
"You insulting my body Ranma?" Akane growled.  
  
She would have been more threatening if she hadn't moved her head slightly to nuzzle into Ranma's chest at the same time as squeezing him slightly tighter.  
  
"Not at all, I'm just saying that it will take a lot more than the time we have to improve ourselves up to where we used to be."  
  
"Then what should we do, I still don't feel that comfortable fighting with this body."  
  
"Now you know what the curse is like."  
  
"What?"  
  
"The curse, when I first got it, everything in my body was different, my muscles, my reach, my speed, my balance, my strength. It was very disorienting till I learnt to control myself."  
  
"I never realized what it must have been like until now."  
  
"So are you two going to lie in there all day, or are you going to come out here?"  
  
Ranma and Akane paused their conversation at the new voice.  
  
Ranma was the first of the two to speak. "Akane, since when did you learn ventriloquism?"  
  
"I could ask you the same question Ranma."  
  
The voice, which the two had heard, came from outside the tent and if they were any judge of the tone and pitch, the voice came from a male. In addition to that, the voice sounded very familiar to both of them.  
  
"Well, you two are just a laugh riot, aren't you? Now are you coming out of the tent or do I have to come in?"  
  
Ranma unzipped the tent flap and stepped out, Akane right behind him.  
  
Sitting at their now lit campfire was a foreign man that neither had seen before. He was sitting with his back against a tree stump and his legs stretched out in front of him.  
  
The man had shoulder length golden blonde hair tied which flowed freely down his back untied. His eyes were a light shade of blue and appeared to catch everything that went on around him. The complexion of his skin was very fair and smooth.  
  
He was dressed in a set of beautifully made clothes. His pants were a pair of soft brown leather. His white shirt appeared to be made from a fine cotton cloth.  
  
"Like what you see?" The man asked with a smile.  
  
For some reason neither fiancée as particularly irritated at the man sitting uninvited by their campfire. Both were more curious as to who he was. Their curiosity was increased by the fact that both of them had the feeling they knew who this person was, or at least had met this person before.  
  
"Who are you?" Ranma asked finally.  
  
"I'm me."  
  
"Who is me?" Akane asked  
  
"No child, the phrase is who am I?"  
  
"I don't know," replied Akane hotly.  
  
"That's not my name, want another try or should I tell you?"  
  
"Tell us!" Ranma demanded.  
  
"Tell you what?"  
  
"Your name." Akane practically screamed.  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"ARRRGGGGHHHH!" both fiancées screamed at the devil of a man who was tormenting them so easily.  
  
"Now now, don't be like that I was just trying to introduce myself."  
  
"Very funny way of doing it." Akane muttered darkly.  
  
"Aww, don't be like that, I'm just trying to lighten the atmosphere up a little with some humour."  
  
"You've got a funny sense of humour you know don't you?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Heh, you know, I get told that all the time, there was this one time Thor told me that . . . Umm, I guess that's not important, but I understand what you mean."  
  
"So just who are you?"  
  
The man tried to sound sincere and apologetic, but he just couldn't keep the grin off of his face, or the mirth from his voice.  
  
"I'm Loki, sorry about this."  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Highlands of Tibet ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"So where do you think we are now?"  
  
"Mt. Fuji,"  
  
A pair of guys that were wandering through a particularly high mountain range weren't having that much fun at the moment. This most likely had something to do with the fact that on their way to Japan they had crossed into Tibet and were currently in its not so inconsiderable mountains.  
  
"Really, so that would explain why we haven't been able to find a person who understands a word of Japanese since yesterday. It also must explain those funny looking gaijin that we had to beat the hell out of earlier today when they tried to stop us. When was the last time you were in Japan that you encountered bandits who couldn't even speak Japanese?"  
  
"Well why don't you try leading for a while and see how easy it is?" Ryoga tried to argue.  
  
"Not a chance in hell, you've gotten us so lost that I think I'll wait till I can find out where we are before I take over leading us. That appears to be the safest thing to do."  
  
"Fine."  
  
With their brief conversation done Ryoga started walking off in a random direction which he knew was the right one.  
  
With a shrug his traveling companion followed him.  
  
"Ranma Saotome, this is all your fault!"  
  
"You say that a lot, what did he do curse you or something?"  
  
Together they headed back towards China, going the right way for once.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Loki, why does that name sound so familiar and why do I get the feeling that I know you from somewhere?" Ranma asked  
  
"I get that feeling too, what is it you want, and how do you know us." Akane added.  
  
"Simple enough questions, and you are partially right, you do know me, but we have never really met properly or had formal introductions. I have watched over both of you since you were children."  
  
He held up a hand forestalling any comments from either of the two martial artists.  
  
"I am a god, more specifically a chaos god, even more specifically, the best known and most powerful chaos god of them all."  
  
"What does that have to do with us?" Ranma asked.  
  
"You two are the favored of my chosen. As such I have taken a personal role in many of the instances that have shaped your lives."  
  
"For example?" Akane prompted.  
  
"Ranma, the Neko-ken has driven almost all it's users completely insane shortly after learning it, but you retained your sanity, do you remember anything about the experience?"  
  
"Not really, it was cold and dark and the monsters were down there and then when I came out. . . Wait a minute."  
  
Ranma stopped talking as his jaw dropped.  
  
"Ranma, what is it?" Akane asked, concern evident in her voice.  
  
Ranma turned his face to Akane, he worked his jaw up and down a couple of times before turning again to face the chaos god.  
  
"It was you wasn't it?"  
  
"Yes, it was." Loki nodded sagely with a sad smile on his face.  
  
"What was him?" Akane asked getting quite confused.  
  
"And that night after Jusenkyo when I was cursed?"  
  
Loki nodded again this time, putting his hand behind the back of his head and scratching nervously.  
  
"And then the cat tongue point, that was you too?" Ranma's voice broke a little as he said this.  
  
"Damn, didn't think you'd remember that one, guess I was a little careless."  
  
"Thank you." Ranma whispered hoarsely as he threw his arms around the god who encircled him with his own arm and held the boy.  
  
"It was the least I could do for making you suffer as you must have by being one of my chosen."  
  
Akane could only stare in shock while her fiancée, who had trouble enough showing public affection to her and his own mother was freely hugging this stranger, who was a guy no less. For some reason she felt no anger at this or even jealousy over her man hugging this stranger.  
  
"Would one of you two please tell me what the hell is going on." Akane's tone made it very obvious this wasn't a request.  
  
"Akane," Ranma's tone was if anything calm and peaceful, "Don't get angry, I know if nothing else Loki means us no harm."  
  
Akane on an instinctual level felt the same way; she just didn't know how Ranma could be so sure about it with this stranger, although it just seemed right.  
  
"What are you talking about Ranma?"  
  
"Loki here has helped me through some really bad times in my life, but I never realized it till right now."  
  
"What?" Akane was shocked.  
  
"When I had my Neko-ken training, remember what pops told you about an old woman that used to bring me out of it?"  
  
"Yeah, but what does. . ."  
  
Ranma cut his fiancée off, "that was really Loki in disguise. After we left we heard she died suddenly, but never thought anything about it, until now I realize I never knew a single thing about her."  
  
Loki and Ranma stood up. Loki put one arm over Ranma's shoulder and the two turned to face Akane.  
  
Loki nodded and continued Ranma's story, "Ranma was in danger of loosing his sanity and maybe his very life. I couldn't let him go and so I calmed him down and put a restraint on the Neko-ken, should it ever overpower him one of my chosen would be able to break him out of it he'd instinctively head for the closest one, but his father just had to go and throw him back into that damned pit over and over, I almost killed the old bastard."  
  
"Then there was the time that I fell into the cursed springs at Jusenkyo, that night I was at an all time low and feeling really bad, Loki came to me in my dreams and cheered me up."  
  
Loki chuckled ruefully, "well I felt kind of bad about that see, and I'm sort of responsible for the springs. One night Lolth and I were out drinking together and we both got kind of smashed, well she bragged about how she could change her unworthy followers into half spider creatures and how fanatical and devoted her followers were. Well I can't quite remember what happened, but when I woke up the next day there were all these springs around me. It seems after Lolth, man she is one wild deity, and I had an argument we sort of created the springs then went looking for interesting creatures to dump in them."  
  
"What sort of things?" Akane hesitantly asked.  
  
"Demons, animals, angels, just about any creature we could get our hands on. We even managed to catch this tentacle monster, man Lolth was pissed at it."  
  
"Umm, so there's a spring of drowned tentacle monster at Jusenkyo?" Akane shivered at the thought.  
  
"No, about 1500 years ago some girl fell in the spring and drowned."  
  
"The spring of drowned girl used to be the spring of drowned tentacle monster?" Akane asked in shock, Ranma was too stunned at the implications to speak.  
  
Loki shrugged, "more or less."  
  
Akane felt the conversation should be steered in a new direction very quickly.  
  
"What about the cat's tongue point that you mentioned?"  
  
Ranma looked down and a look of shame came over his face.  
  
Loki squeezed Ranma's shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile.  
  
"You don't have to tell her, but I think she has a right to know. In fact, I believe that it would be best if you told her, but it is still your choice."  
  
Ranma sighed, "No, you're right, Akane deserves to know this."  
  
Akane was holding her breathe in suspense, what was it he had to tell her? Those other two incidents were among the most traumatic experiences Ranma had gone through, what could have happened.  
  
"Akane, when Cologne hit me with the cat's tongue pressure point I was at a whole new low and suffering some pretty bad depression."  
  
Akane had known Ranma had been depressed, that was why she had taken him to the carnival where he had learned the Kachyuu Tenshin Amaguriken. She leaned a little closer so as not to hear his words.  
  
"The night before the festival, I couldn't take it anymore and decided to end it."  
  
Akane gasped, she had never thought it could be so bad. She saw tears in the corners of Ranma's eyes and knew he was serious.  
  
"I had just gotten my Tanto out and was ready to kill myself when I passed out."  
  
"I couldn't let Ranma kill himself so I came to him and talked to him for a couple of hours, by the end of it he was willing to go on with life, although if you hadn't taken him to that little celebration where he learnt the Amazon technique he might have done it anyway."  
  
As Loki finished talking he gave a shamed Ranma a hug.  
  
Akane just stood there stunned, she had no idea what to say, but once again felt it was a very good idea to change the topic.  
  
"You said you watched over both of us, did you mean just Ranma and by proxy me, or did you mean both of us separately?"  
  
Loki laughed, and silently mouthed, 'thank you' to her.  
  
"I meant both of you separately. I watched over you and helped you when I thought it was necessary."  
  
Akane's eyes got a tear in it when a memory suddenly hit her.  
  
"Mommy?"  
  
Loki smiled sadly once again and nodded.  
  
"You were then when the cloaked man took mommy?"  
  
"Yes I was child."  
  
A fire came into Akane's eyes at a different memory.  
  
"You were there after Kuno's proclamation."  
  
"Now that was one of the greater acts of stupidity I've seen from the poetry mangler."  
  
"And you were there by Ranma when I died in China."  
  
The god nodded, Akane was truly crying now.  
  
Ranma and Loki extended an arm each to her.  
  
She obligingly ran into the embrace, putting an arm around both of them.  
  
"What did you mean about your mother Akane?" Ranma asked his fiancée.  
  
"When she died I saw a cloaked figure reach out and take mommy, Loki was there too. That night he came to me in my room and made me feel better when I was angry. You gave me mallet-sama and told me how to keep it hidden till I needed it."  
  
"Yes I did."  
  
"Remind me to thank you for giving her that later." Ranma growled  
  
"Hey, she needed a release for her anger, and that seemed like a good idea."  
  
"Fine, I can live with that, but what about Kuno's announcement, why would that be such a momentous occasion."  
  
"When Loki came to me that time, it was the same day Kuno made the announcement, all the things that had been happening to me since I got to high school, all the problems with the boys and other students came to a head at that point. I couldn't take it anymore and I was going to run away and escape."  
  
"That's when I put her to sleep and came to talk for a while."  
  
"Although I didn't remember till just now, Loki convinced me not to run away. He told me to remain strong and that an ally was coming, a kindred spirit as he put it."  
  
"Damn, I wasn't expecting you two to remember all those sleep sessions, I guess I must have underestimated you."  
  
"Don't feel too bad, lots of people underestimate us all the time, they usually learn pretty quick just how good I am." Ranma factually stated.  
  
"You used to underestimate my skill too Ranma, so don't say anything."  
  
"Yes dear, now what was that you mentioned about China, all I remember is holding your body and calling out to you."  
  
"I remember, you had your eyes turned heavenwards and were screaming for me. Loki was standing behind you and calling for me to return. He said something I can't remember to the cloaked figure that was holding me and then I returned to my body."  
  
"You were there for us even then?" Ranma asked the god.  
  
"I've always tried to be there for you, given the atrocious fathers you had, I figured you'd need me."  
  
Tears trickled down both Ranma and Akane's faces as they increased the pressure of the hug.  
  
"Calm down my children, you've made me proud to call you two the first among my chosen."  
  
"So what are you doing here now, being here with Akane and no distractions I feel better than I have in my life?"  
  
"Well I came to help you and give you some warning as to what is to come."  
  
"Why do I get the feeling that I'm not going to like this?" Akane asked bluntly.  
  
Loki just chuckled.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On a boat off the coast of Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
She was ready for this, soon her hunt would come to a close, she would find the red headed girl who had gotten lucky and defeated her in front of her village during her moment of glory and she would have her revenge.  
  
Then with the outsider dead all she'd have to do is take the girl's head or scalp and return back to China victorious.  
  
The Amazon champion smiled grimly, she would kill the outsider girl known as Ranma as quickly as possible and go home.  
  
Of course the nice thing about this hunt was it had allowed her to get away from that fool Mu-tsu who was always chasing her.  
  
She had gotten passage on a ship once she learnt her target had escaped to Japan.  
  
The warrior almost cursed. She would be in the outsider's homeland far from the tribe, and she had next to no skill in the language.  
  
In the end it wouldn't matter, she would catch the weakling outsider girl and kill her. That was the word of the law.  
  
If perchance some attractive outsider defeated her, she wouldn't be opposed to fulfilling the other side of the outsider law. At the very least, it would help to get that stupid blind idiot off her back.  
  
Of course if she didn't really like the guy there was no need to tell him of that little stipulation of the law.  
  
The warrior settled down to get some rest, with any luck the ship would arrive in the next few days and she could pick up the outsider's trail from there.  
  
She considered herself lucky that the girl had that pet panda traveling with her. She never had much trouble following the two thanks to all the reports and gossip she'd pick up along the way.  
  
She opened her book, 'An Amazon's guide to Japanese'. Unfortunately she'd have to improve her language skills if she wanted to be taken seriously or be able to ask for directions to her quarry.  
  
Soon, soon that redheaded demon would be dead and she could relax.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, afternoon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"So what you're telling us is that you practically forced the other deities to give us a second chance?" Akane asked, astonished at the being in front of her.  
  
"Well in not so many words, yes." The divine trickster, friend of puck, god of chaos, norse god, brother of Thor replied with a grin.  
  
"So let me get this straight, you not only forced the god of death to give us another chance, or in Akane's case two chances, and then had forced the rest of the gods to send us back in time." Ranma put in.  
  
"Well yes and no."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Ranma and Akane chorused.  
  
The three were sitting together with their backs against a felled tree, neither Ranma nor Akane could remember which one of the two had felled the tree, but neither was really thinking about that right now.  
  
Akane was resting her head against Loki's left shoulder. Loki had his arm around her.  
  
Ranma was sitting on Loki's right and also had his, currently a her, head resting on Loki's right shoulder. She was a she right now because she couldn't bring herself to perform such a display as a guy, but she felt so safe and comfortable like this, she didn't want to not rest her head on Loki's shoulder.  
  
"Well I didn't exactly force the particular death god who came for Akane to give her back, but I did give him some advice."  
  
"Oh and what might that advice have been?" Akane asked sweetly.  
  
"Well I informed him that there are three places to enter the underworld from Japan, five in China, and dozens more around the world. Then I asked him if he honestly thought the godslayer would sit idly by while his mate was away from him. Rather than meet you in hades and leave half the plane decimated by battle and possibly be destroyed he decided to return her soul to her body."  
  
"Then how about afterwards, what did you say to convince them to send Ranma and I back in time?"  
  
Loki mumbled something under his breath.  
  
"What was that you said, I don't think Akane or I caught that last remark?"  
  
"I threatened them with the end."  
  
"The end of what?"  
  
"The end of it all, the apocalypse, Ragnarok, Armagedon, complete destruction, you know, that type of end."  
  
Akane and Ranma were shocked.  
  
"You threatened all that, just for us?" Ranma asked.  
  
Loki nodded.  
  
"Awww, you're so sweet at times, I can see where Ranma gets it from."  
  
"You said there was something you wanted to warn us about, what was it you wanted to warn us about?"  
  
"Well, I can't really explain it very well without you two running through a long lesson in magic and cosmic law, but I'll try to simplify it as much as possible for you."  
  
"Gee thanks." Ranma facetiously replied.  
  
"Smack him for me would you?" Akane asked.  
  
"My pleasure my child." Loki replied with a grin, and gave Ranma a light tap on the back of his head.  
  
"Ok, I'll be good, sorry, sorry, please continue."  
  
"Well as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, we couldn't send you back in time and let you keep your memory without certain other beings who are affected by the time stream also being affected. Well, when you were sent back in time other beings were well. . . I guess the best way to say it is that they were also taken along for the ride. Demons, Gods, Angels, as well as powerful sorcerers and other magical beings were also sent back in time with you. There are certain criteria one would have to meet before keeping their memory. Any being powerful enough would also be sent back in time, although they might not know the reason for the time differential."  
  
"What are the criteria?" Akane asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.  
  
"I'd be more than happy to tell you, but to understand you'll need to have some base knowledge onto how it works."  
  
"And what would that knowledge be?" Akane asked.  
  
"Simple, just get degrees in quantum physics, temporal mechanics, three decades of training in the magic arts, a god to explain it to you, and a couple hundred years of life. Right now you only have one of those things."  
  
"Ahh, I see," Akane suddenly went pale, "wait a minute, Saffron wouldn't happen to meet those requirements would he?"  
  
Ranma sucked in his breath and held it, waiting ashen faced to hear Loki's response.  
  
"Unfortunately yes, he would meet the requirements. That is another reason why I have come to you, in front of you are some of the hardest trials you have ever faced. The martial artists and enemies you have faced before will seem like training against some of the individuals you will meet."  
  
"You've got to be kidding me, we didn't even survive last time and now you're telling me that we've got an even harder challenge to face this time."  
  
"Yes, last time through you had allies who were also rivals and enemies, this time the lines will be more clean cut and less blurry. Allies will be allies and enemies will be enemies. You must make your choices more carefully this time around, as the goddess of the past told you, you will not get another chance no matter how much influence the chaos gods and I can pull. I've put my faith in you, don't let me down."  
  
"I guess that means we should get back to training then." Ranma sighed.  
  
"Yeah I guess you're right Ranma, although it's to bad we couldn't just enjoy the day together, I can't remember the last time I was so at peace."  
  
"What about last night?" Ranma innocently asked while Loki chuckled.  
  
"Baka." Akane said, blushing brightly.  
  
"Amazing how we come to yet another reason as to why I am here with you two."  
  
"Huh?" Both Fiancées intelligently responded.  
  
"As we've been talking, I've been realigning your bodies, over the next few weeks they will get closer and closer to what they were before you two died. The process should be completely finished within a month or two. That way your bodies can adjust to the changing stress."  
  
"Thanks, that's going to really help in our training." Ranma gladly thanked the chaos god.  
  
"It also means we get tomorrow all to ourselves without having to worry about pushing ourselves like we did yesterday."  
  
Ranma definitely liked that idea, and it was more than obvious Loki approved.  
  
"You two definitely deserve it. You've brought more chaos and fun into this world then I thought possible for two people."  
  
"Thanks Loki, despite what people might say you're not such a bad god."  
  
"Since I'm in such a good mood, I think I'll let that one slide child."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"ARRGGGGHHHHHHH"  
  
The armoured figure was in quite a mood. This seemed to happen more and more lately.  
  
"You really should calm down, if it were possible I'd say you were going to burst a blood vessel or give yourself a stress ulcer."  
  
The armoured figure rounded on the cloaked one a fire blazing in its eyes.  
  
"Why should I calm down, Loki has taken an active part in things, thanks to the sheer level of chaos surrounding them, I can't even get a scrying spell through the interference, for all I know, Loki is telling them who he wants destroyed and how he wants them to suffer."  
  
The cloaked figure although shorter then the armoured one wasn't in the least bit cowed by the other's anger.  
  
"You're overreacting."  
  
"Am I?"  
  
"Yes, you and I both know that isn't Loki's style, he is a lot more likely to just be having a good time, you know how strongly he feels for those two, almost like they were his own children."  
  
"Wouldn't surprise me in the least knowing him, the only question is would he be their father or mother?"  
  
"That's a low blow."  
  
"But it's true."  
  
"I'll give you that."  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, END OF CHAPTER 9 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: We come to the conclusion of yet another chapter. This chapter took quite a bit of thought as it introduces two more characters to the plot.  
  
For those of you who are wondering, Lolth is another deity from forgotten realms, she is a chaotic evil being, she is worshipped by evil drow (dark elves who live underground), she is considered to be probably the most chaotic being in the forgotten realms pantheon. Somehow, it just seemed appropriate to mention her in this story.  
  
If you can't figure out who the Amazon on the ship is, you need a very painful reeducation on the subject of the Ranmaverse.  
  
Loki has also been introduced and seems to get along with Ranma and Akane, what could this mean for the future of the two of them. Will Loki be dropping by in the future to check up on the two or will he merely watch as he's done before.  
  
Soon the cast will be assembled, the players on stage and the story can really progress to the real action.  
  
All this on more on the next chapter, same Ranma time (hopefully) same Ranma channel.  
  
I hope everyone is enjoying this story. If you are, then please review and tell me what you thought of this, I am always searching for comments on my writing and how I can improve it. If you have anything to say at all, please review. The reviews are one of the things that keep me going, especially the reviews that offer advice and/or criticism. I welcome all reviews though, but please try to keep flames to a minimum.  
  
Hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	10. A Time to Rest

One Last Chance ch.10  
  
**** A Time to Rest ****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter the couple went on a training trip together to get themselves up to speed. In the process, they got closer together and trained. Ryoga and his traveling partner managed to get further and further away from their target, all the way to Tibet before turning around to go the right way. Loki, god of chaos himself introduced himself to his two chosen, namely Ranma and Akane. He then talked with them for a while about the situation the two were in. He began a spell that would slowly return the bodies the two fiancées had before they died back to them. We also saw the introduction of an Amazon warrior who was hunting the two. Now, on with the story.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
We find our two heroes sitting at their campsite together. Neither had done much training that day; both were still absorbing what they had learnt from the chaos god Loki.  
  
Ranma is sitting with Akane by his side. The fire in front of them was burning warmly so as to keep off the chill of the encroaching night.  
  
"So Loki has been watching over us since we were born?" Akane recapped.  
  
"Yeah, that's the way it seems, and you thought I was overprotective."  
  
"Hey, I think it's rather nice to have someone watching over me."  
  
"You're just saying that aren't you."  
  
"Yeah, I guess I am, but Loki did help us out quite a few times, we wouldn't have made it without him so I'm not as mad as I probably should be." Ranma said with a chuckle.  
  
"What I'm wondering is how we got selected to be his chosen, and then us coming together like we have, it is a little bit too much of a coincidence even for us."  
  
A third voice broke in on the conversation.  
  
"Would you like me to answer that question or are you two just going to talk?"  
  
Loki was acting as a backrest for the two chosen warriors of chaos.  
  
"After all, I know more about you two than anyone else, especially when it comes to metaphysical destiny and the like. So if you two have any questions why not just ask, I'll be more than happy"  
  
"Sorry about that Loki, we sort of forgot you were there." Ranma apologized.  
  
"Mmmhhh, comfy," was all the response Akane gave.  
  
"What am I going to do with you children?"  
  
"Hey, we never asked to be your chosen, you dumped the job on the us now live with the consequences, we've had to." Ranma's tone held no anger, only humour; being round his patron deity was having a good effect on him and his fiancée.  
  
"Do you really think I wanted to be a god of chaos, do you think I wouldn't give it up for a normal life?"  
  
Ranma thought for a moment before answering, "No, you wouldn't."  
  
Loki laughed  
  
"True, but would you give up being a chosen so easily?"  
  
"No, if I had lived a different life I'd never have met or fallen in love with Akane."  
  
"Oh Ranma you say the sweetest things." Akane replied, giving Ranma a warm smile.  
  
Ranma blushed slightly at the praise.  
  
"Well anyway, back to the question at hand, do you two really want to know how and why you became chosen?"  
  
Both of the martial artists responded in the affirmative.  
  
"Well, as for the how, it was in your destiny. When you were born you both bore the mark of a chosen on your very essence."  
  
"So we were your chosen from the start?"  
  
"Well yes and no. Ranma had a very special mark in him; he had the mark of a godslayer. One out of every million has the potential to be a chosen of the gods. Of those chosen one every hundred generations has the mark of a godslayer. These children are highly contested for among the gods and even demons. The sheer potential as a chosen in him made Ranma a very valued person even though he was a mere baby."  
  
Loki shifted a little to get more comfortable before continuing.  
  
"A godslayer has something special in him or her that allows the godslayer, a mortal, the power to end the life of even an immortal being. That power is something a lot of gods feared, many wanted him dead before he could do any harm, others wanted him as a tool to be used in their intrigues. The pantheon of war was practically drooling over his potential as a battle master. The powers of death saw him as a kindred spirit. The creators of life saw him as an abomination. The entities of chaos saw him as a maelstrom of disaster. In the end it came down to every different deity or set of deities seeing him as nothing but a tool for their own purposes. The fates would not or could not read Ranma's life thread which meant that he would be a perfect chosen for any deity or demon that claimed him for their own."  
  
"What did you see him as?" Akane asked.  
  
Loki chuckled.  
  
"To me Ranma was a way to piss of the other gods, at first I had no real interest in him except for something to taunt and hold over the heads of the other deities. Just think of what great big daddy of all Odin would say if I walked through Asgard with a godslayer with me. I'm sure he'd even catch the eye of a few valkyries and I know how hard they are to seduce."  
  
"So I meant nothing to you?"  
  
"Most mortals mean very little to divine or demonic entities except as amusement pieces or tools. I'm not really much better than the rest of them, but while your fate still hung in the balance, I did something most of the other gods would never even have thought of, I looked into your soul to see what you were going to be like. I was awed; inside of you there was such potential for destruction yet at the same time so many other possibilities. I had never seen anything like it before in any mortal and at that point, I knew I had to have you before any of the other gods could twist or change you into something to fit them. I wanted you to grow up and let your natural spirit take its own course with as little interference as possible."  
  
"So how did you get me when there were so many other gods after me, was there some huge free-for-all?"  
  
"No, although that would have been amusing to watch, but if that had happened you would more than likely belong to either a battle god or a death god right now. There were so many after you that it was left to Tyche, you'd know her as lady luck, to decide your fate."  
  
"And you just happened to be picked to be the one who got Ranma?"  
  
"Not quite, when I knew that was going to happen, I sort of seduced her to rule the verdict in my favor, unsurprisingly it worked and I got Ranma."  
  
"Well that explains Ranma, but what about me, if I don't have the mark of a godslayer and am just a plain chosen I imagine it was a lot easier to get me."  
  
"Easier, yes, but not by much. In Akane's case she was originally promised to be the chosen of Hure, goddess of anger and hatred. She is the one who originally claimed Akane at her birth."  
  
"That would explain her temper then." Ranma reasoned. Akane moved her arm over and elbowed him in the stomach as her reply.  
  
"Actually Hure never got to work on her, Akane is just naturally aggressive."  
  
"Then if I was her chosen, how did I become your chosen?"  
  
"Well I got her drunk and made a bet with her over you. I put Ranma up as my end of the bargain and she had to put Akane up in return."  
  
"You gambled with my very fate with the goddess of anger! What would have happened to me if she had won?"  
  
"Well I imagine that with both you and Akane as her chosen she would of had the perfect berserkers. The two of you would have always been angry at something and it would be next to impossible for anyone but Hure or another of Hure's chosen to calm you down. You would have become dependent on her for peace of mind."  
  
Ranma and Akane shuddered at the mental images that such an occurrence brought to mind. Ranma shuddered at the thought of a constantly angry Akane. Akane shuddered at the thought of a truly angry Ranma.  
  
In all the years she had known him Akane had trouble thinking of Ranma angry any time. She had seen him pissed off and irritated, but never truly angry. It was a very scary to picture what Ranma might would be capable of doing if the was angry. Besides having the ability to level most of Tokyo and probably a good part of any army sent after him.  
  
"Of course, I'd never of let that happen, I won't bore you with the unimportant details, but lets just say that I had the odds in my favor."  
  
"You cheated again?" Ranma's voice was tinged with both relief and disgust.  
  
"Nope, I just got her roaring drunk before our little competition." Loki chuckled brightly at a memory only he and one other shared, and the other one didn't look back on the occasion with near the joy that the chaos god did.  
  
Ranma and Akane both shared a relieved laugh.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ France, Palace at Versailles ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Where are we now?"  
  
"I was about to ask you the same question."  
  
"How should I know, I can't see past all these hedges, why would anyone want their hedges this high."  
  
"I'm more curious as to how we got into this garden in the first place. I've never seen anything like it."  
  
The two were stopped and looking around the huge gardens, they had been in them for more than an hour and still hadn't found a way out.  
  
"Well why don't we ask that couple where we are?"  
  
"Fine, but I'm sure that way is the right direction." The bandana clad figure pointed off in a direction.  
  
"Umm, I hate to tell you that, but there's a wall right there."  
  
Ryoga rubbed his hand against the back of his head.  
  
"Woops, well I meant that was the right direction, but of course we have to either go over or get around the wall."  
  
Ryoga's companion was nonplussed at the lost boy's attempt at covering his mistake.  
  
"Once we get back to somewhere in Japan I'll take over leading us to Saotome."  
  
"Umm excuse me sir, but can you tell me the way to Tokyo."  
  
The pair had soon learnt to stop asking for directions to Nerima, they seemed to get much better results when asking for Tokyo. Especially seeing as that was often the only word the people they encountered understood.  
  
"Excuse moi monsure, parlevous Frances?"  
  
"Sorry, I don't understand what you are saying, would it be possible to direct us to Tokyo, Tokyo!" Ryoga's partner stepped forwards, standing in between Ryoga and this person. Whenever Ryoga was left to his own devices while they tried to get directions, he had a tendency to resort to directly threatening the poor innocent bystander, which they happened to catch.  
  
"Qui?"  
  
"Tokyo, do you know where Tokyo is? T-O-K-Y-O."  
  
The man pointed to the east.  
  
"Thank you"  
  
The duo headed off in the direction the man pointed, slowly drifting off course a little at a time till they were headed for Britain.  
  
"Ranma Saotome this is all your fault." The standard phrase was taken up by two voices. "I really wish you'd stop doing that." Ryoga quipped.  
  
"I'll tell you what, I'll only say it when you say it."  
  
"That's the only time you say it anyway."  
  
"Then you should have no problem with me putting in that condition."  
  
"Gah you're almost as bad as Ranma."  
  
"Coming from you, I'll take that as a compliment."  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Just curious, but since you know so much, you wouldn't happen to know what my mother saw in my pops would you. I mean how would an honourable, nice, and beautiful woman like mom fall in love with a dishonourable, lazy slob like pops? Let me guess it was an arranged marriage wasn't it?"  
  
"Actually no, it wasn't an arranged marriage, as a matter of fact they were in love. There was a small amount of divine intervention involved however, but I am not allowed to tell you just how it came about. What I can tell you is that your mother knows a lot more than she ever let on to either of you. You might try getting to know her better as long as you don't try that whole stupid Ranko and Mr. Panda thing again."  
  
"Yeah that was pretty dumb wasn't it, I mean she's my mother, she wouldn't . . . won't make me commit Seppuku over the curse, she is my mother after all. This time round, no pretending or deceiving her. She'll accept me as I am, I'm sure of it right Akane?"  
  
Ranma's voice was pleading. He desperately needed the reassurance that his life wouldn't end so soon after he got it back. Akane understood this and smiled at her fiancée.  
  
"I don't think there is any chance that any mother could bring herself to kill her son. As long as you're not an evil murderer or someone who delights in pain I don't think she'd even consider the possibility. You aren't those things and so you have nothing to worry about love."  
  
"I'll never get tired of that."  
  
"Tired of what Ranma?"  
  
"Hearing you call me love."  
  
Akane blushed fiercely while Loki and Ranma chuckled.  
  
"Ten out of ten for that one kiddo, I guess being around me really is good for the two of you. Sometimes I even impress myself."  
  
"Now let's see, who does that remind me of?" Akane joked.  
  
"Technically it would be him reminding you of me since I was here first, but who am I to quibble?"  
  
"Umm a god" Ranma answered, missing both the implications and the rhetorical part of the rhetorical question.  
  
"Ranma, you're a beautiful person. Promise me you won't change."  
  
"He will change, if you think for a second you're going to keep those table manners after we marry you have another thing coming mister I don't care what your father says, but I won't have my husband or my children eating like animals."  
  
"Yes dear."  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Osaka ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
She had been through here, the Amazon hunter knew it. She had overheard the word Tokyo in the outsider girls ranting several times. Why the outsider held such conversations with a panda she'd never come to understand. The red-haired fool had held what seemed to be real and intense conversations with the panda albeit one-sided; she even acted like the panda talked back, of course that was impossible.  
  
Honestly, she talked to that panda pet of hers like it was a person. Even if it was a really well trained panda the girl obviously had something wrong with her.   
  
The warrior almost felt sorry for the outsider girl, there was obviously something not right with her. She acted more like an Amazon warrior then many of the women at the village, but she was an outsider and not an Amazon. Then there was the way she'd talk to animals, clearly she was not completely in her right state of mind, but then again quite a few Amazons back in the village weren't in their correct state of mind either.  
  
It was too bad she had to kill this outsider; under different conditions she would have been quite the Amazon warrior, all they'd have to do was use the Memory Shiatsu Shampoo and the girl would wake up suffering from amnesia. After seeing her with the panda, she knew that the girl would have made an excellent animal handler. The village hadn't had a truly skillful one in quite some time. If the fluke on the challenge log that caused this whole incident hadn't really been the fluke it was, the girl might be quite a fighter.  
  
During the outsider's flight from justice the girl had been amazing in the way she continually escaped from her hunter. The redhead must have at least some skill the way she managed to dodge her pursuer.  
  
Eventually the fugitive from the law would be caught and regrettably she'd have to be killed.  
  
If there were some way, any way out of killing the girl, I'd leap at the chance. She really doesn't deserve this, she wasn't aware of the law when she challenged me and would have no way of knowing the consequences. Of course she shouldn't have eaten my prize in the first place, but I just expected her to lose easily and be in servitude to the tribe, then she could have become a valuable part of the tribe, and they could have been friends, and maybe.   
  
No, she couldn't let her thoughts travel down that particular line. It was true she didn't have that many friends, in fact, if you didn't count that blind fool who was always pursuing her then she really didn't have any friends, plenty of rivals, competition, and even a few supporters, but she didn't have any real friends.  
  
Part of the reason that she had so willingly given the outsider the kiss of death, it was somewhat extreme after all, had been the fact that she felt betrayed. In the few moments she had known the outsider, she had briefly hoped that this outsider could be her friend. Coming from outside the tribe, not knowing anybody, possibly even being a training partner. She had promised herself to go easy on the girl and try not to hurt her too badly, just knock her out.  
  
When the outsider beat her she was so angry she carried out the most extreme option she had available. Now after a month tracking the outsider she saw how wrong she had been in her hasty decision, fueled by betrayal and anger. She could have tried to get the girl adopted into the tribe, but once she had given the kiss of death there was no backing out and no second thoughts.  
  
She wished great-grandmother had been there in the village at the time, but she was away somewhere on tribe business. There was no way to contact her or ask her for advice on the issue or a way out of it.  
  
She barely had the rest of the day to pack and equip herself from the armoury for her hunt. Now she couldn't even return to ask her grandmother if there was a way out of the kiss of death, to return to the village before her task had been carried out would result in punishment and most likely loss of her status as the champion of the village.  
  
She wished she could go back and change things; she didn't want to hunt this brave and skilled outsider girl who had done nothing worse than accidentally beating an Amazon. She desperately wanted to make things right and have this girl as a friend, but that wasn't possible, the girl had to die. Sometimes life just wasn't fair, all she could do was catch the girl and make her death as quick and painless as possible.  
  
The hunter set up camp after she got to some woods outside the city, she'd rest here for a while and get her fighting skills back up after she slipped out of her tracking mode. The intense concentration tracking this outsider had taken helped her to not think about her situation. Here she would rest and hone her skills back up so as to deliver the final blow as mercifully as possible.  
  
As she settled down for the night to sleep, she thought to herself that she was didn't know whether to be happy or sad that those two wandering martial artists had pointed out the direction to her, they seemed ok for men, but there was something strange about the way that the one with fangs and a bandana kept looking around as if he was lost, but he had pointed out the way to her and seemed pretty confident and since he was Japanese himself he must have known the way. They had then wandered off a different way heading for parts unknown. It was too bad; she could have used some company. She quickly shrugged those thoughts out of her mind, she was a proud Amazon warrior and she had to complete her duty no matter how much she didn't want to.  
  
She wanted another chance to do things right, another chance to make things right, another chance to avoid her foolishness. However, Shampoo knew the truth, there were no second chances.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"Well you two ready to go home?" Loki's question greeted the two as they stumbled out of their shared tent. The pair had offered to share the tent with Loki, somehow the two didn't seem to mind the god and actually trusted him an amazingly large amount for the short amount of time that they had known him.  
  
Loki had bowed out, claiming he needed no sleep and that while he had matters to attend to, he would be back when the two of them awoke.  
  
"We were planning on spending today training, but thanks to you there isn't really much need to do that." Ranma replied, rubbing sleep from his eyes.  
  
Even though they could have slept in that day since they weren't doing anything, but training Ranma had wanted to head home early so that . . . well he didn't know why he wanted to head home early, but he had a nagging feeling that it was going to be necessary.  
  
When you were attacked as often as Ranma was, often with no warning whatsoever, you learned to trust your instincts and gut feelings, this time was no different. Well actually Ranma perfected his gut instinct by learning to predict when Akane was going to cook.  
  
Ranma didn't want to let Akane in on the premonition of trouble he was having, but he knew he would have to warn her on their way back to Nerima that something was going to happen and it was going to happen soon.  
  
"Are you sure about this Ranma, we could stay till tomorrow?" Akane's tone was slightly pleading as she made the request.  
  
"Sorry Akane, we need to get home, I have a feeling something is going to happen and that we will be needed back in Nerima."  
  
"Will we ever get any peace and quiet?"  
  
"Somehow I doubt it."  
  
Akane shot the god a glare.  
  
"Did I ask you?"  
  
"Well it seemed to be an open question to which I had an answer, so I thought I might as well answer it."  
  
"That satisfy you Akane," Ranma asked.  
  
"Argggh, men."  
  
Ranma splashed himself with his canteen changing into a girl.  
  
"Whose a man," she asked Akane.  
  
Akane turned to Loki and began to say something.  
  
The giant serpent she was about to point at beat her to words.  
  
"Nobody here but us gods, you see any guys round here Ranko?"  
  
"No Loki, I see no guys here just a cute girl, big snake, and a tomboy."  
  
"See Akane, no guys here."  
  
The two 'eeped' at Akane's flaring battle aura.  
  
"CHAOS NO BAKA," Akane yelled as she advanced on the two.  
  
~~~~~~~~ A few minutes of pain and Akane style violence later ~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"You know something Ranma?"  
  
"What's that Loki?"  
  
"Akane's temper really isn't as funny when you're on the receiving end."  
  
"No really, maybe you should get some other gods to volunteer, I'll take a week off and let you supreme beings have a chance to see what it's like first hand."  
  
"Ahhh, come on you two it's not that bad . . . Well actually I guess it's ok if you want to complain, its not like there are any men around here, just a girl, snake, and a tomboy."  
  
The other two might have agreed with her, but neither particularly felt like agreeing with her.  
  
Their reason for not agreeing was obvious to most people; most meaning the Kunos might have had trouble understanding the reason, but besides that most people who had double digit IQ would understand.  
  
Ranma was tied to a rather thick branch of a nearby tree that was close to camp, during her and Loki's beating. The rope that tied her wasn't that thick and she could probably break it by flexing her muscles enough. She knew this, but didn't want to do it yet.  
  
The reason she didn't want to break the rope was that Akane might still be angry with her and the chaos god, Ranma thought it might be best to give her fiancée another couple of minutes to calm down. She was sure Akane would give her some unspoken signal when she had calmed down enough. Already Ranma could tell her breathing had calmed down and her pulse was returning to normal. She'd be ready to let him go soon.  
  
Another reason, but not nearly as important, the rope holding him just happened to be Loki. It was amazing how flexible and stretchy Loki was when he was a snake. He really didn't feel like tearing Loki in two, so for now he would just wait until Akane was ready to let the two down.  
  
Loki for his part was impressed that Akane had twisted him into such a quality square knot.  
  
"Umm Ranma, do you think she'll let us down soon, my spine, well actually my entire body is starting to hurt."  
  
"Just starting, guess she didn't do a thorough enough job."  
  
"I can't believe she used me as a rope."  
  
"Listen it's not my fault if you ignored rule number 34."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, but do you think she'll let us down anytime soon?"  
  
"Sure, she's almost calmed down enough to let us out on her own. If we had a good enough reason she'd let us down right now, but I can't think of any reason good enough, so I guess we'll just hang around for now. Pardon the pun."  
  
Loki groaned, but then acting on an idea called over to Akane, who had begun to disassemble camp.  
  
"Akane my child, I have something for you, actually it's a present for both you and Ranma, would you mind letting us down and I'll give it to you."  
  
Akane seemed to consider it for a while, "ok, but it had better be a nice present or else it'll be a sheepshank next time."  
  
Akane went over and with a couple of skillful pulls she had the two of them freed. Unfortunately she wasn't very gentle as the two fell to the ground in an undignified heap, Ranma landing on top of Loki with the other half of Loki falling onto Ranma.  
  
A moment later the two had sorted themselves out, Loki returned to his human form and with a little water Loki flash heated, Ranma also joined him in his male form.  
  
"So what is this present?"  
  
"Just a little something for the two of you to seal your love."  
  
Loki smiled as he produced two small circular objects.  
  
Akane gasped, in his hand Loki held two beautiful silver rings.  
  
"Now hold still a moment, this will take just a second, you might feel a moment's discomfort."  
  
The two rings floated into the air for a moment before they began to glow.  
  
Akane gasped and fell to her hands and knees.  
  
Ranma saw this and took a step towards her, but he staggered and barely managed to stay on his feet.  
  
They both felt as if a part of them was being taken away, like something was sucking their very essence from them. Needless to say this wasn't a very pleasant feeling, but strangely enough it didn't hurt, it just had a very real sense of wrongness to it.  
  
Akane looked up to see an evil gleam in the god's eyes. Ranma was fighting to stay on his feet and failed to notice it. It dawned on Akane that they had been a little too trusting of this god.  
  
A skeptical person by nature Akane hadn't given thought to why she had trusted this being so fully. This would have been strange behavior for her had she paused to think about it, but for some reason she hadn't.  
  
Ranma, Ranma was also a paranoid person out of necessity, but he had accepted this chaos god, Loki, without a second thought, hell, Ranma had even hugged this god, something he had never shown that much affection to even his father in public.  
  
Those clues should have been more than enough for her to realize there was something wrong with the situation, but no, and now it was too late.  
  
Akane gasped again as a small glowing ball of energy separated from her body, coming right out of her chest to hover in front of her. The red ball began to move towards one of the rings, only now the rings weren't floating in the air; Loki was wearing them on his fingers.  
  
She turned to see Ranma, still standing, but fighting to stay so. A similar ball of blue energy had just come from his chest. As it separated from him, he fell to his knees, but didn't go down any further. Ranma had his eyes squeezed shut as he fought for breath and strength.  
  
Akane herself was now doing everything she could just to keep from sprawling on the ground.  
  
The balls of energy began to drift away from the two whom they were stolen from and towards Loki's rings.  
  
A tear slipped down Akane's cheek as she struggled. Finally aware of just how great the blunder the two of them had made and the ease at which they had been deceived. She shed the tear also for the betrayal she felt by this god, which she had trusted so deeply and blindly.  
  
As the tear fell the energy drew closer to the rings.  
  
Ranma finally opened his eyes and saw what was happening. Despite the struggle against gravity he was fighting as his body felt like it was being forced down, he gasped out one word.  
  
"No."  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"So what do you think Loki is up to with those two?"  
  
The armoured figure pounded one fist against a wall at the hooded figure's words.  
  
"Thank you for reminding me of that detail. I do believe that I had forgotten that Loki was with the godslayer and his mate right now," a gauntleted hand pointed towards a wall screen that showed nothing but a chaotic swirling of colours and shapes where once was the image of Ranma and Akane's camp, "that wasn't enough of a reminder for me to know he was with them."  
  
The armoured figure was practically glowing with barely restrained anger and frustration.  
  
"Calm down, its not like Loki is going to do anything drastic."  
  
The armoured figure sighed and slumped into its seat and if anything sounded more tired than angry this time.  
  
"That's the point, Loki is a chaos god, considered by many to be the chaos god. Even Lolth is considered second to him due to her predisposition towards evil tendencies over anything good. Loki is just that, chaotic, we have no idea what he may or may not do with or to them."  
  
"They are his chosen, I doubt he'll do anything to them that isn't in their best interests."  
  
"Not true, if they are in his interests over theirs' I'm sure he'd be more than willing to do something possibly damaging to the two of them. Besides they shouldn't be his in the first place. He shouldn't even have Akane, let alone the godslayer, he got her through trickery and he got the godslayer through cheating. They should not be his chosen."  
  
"Would you rather them be your chosen?"  
  
"I'd rather them be Mars' chosen then Loki's chosen."  
  
"Don't worry, this should be the last full day of the training trip, one way or another, they will be heading home and Loki won't be able to go with them."  
  
"Then we can get back to interfering right?"  
  
That brought a smile to the face of the cloaked figure, or at least it might have, light just didn't want to pierce the darkness of the cloak's hood and as such there wasn't much way of seeing the cloaked figure's face.  
  
"Yes we can, but your right, I hope Loki doesn't do anything too drastic to them while we're blinded like this."  
  
An uneasy feeling had settled on both of the figures, both thinking that the old phrase, 'what you don't know can't hurt you' and just how wrong it was.  
  
Neither of the two figures felt like laughing.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, END OF CHAPTER 10 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: This chapter came along faster than many of the others despite the fact that it is one of the longer ones. I'm happy to have this chapter done. I get the feeling that the training trip idea for this story is beginning to wear thin, and people want the story to continue on past this.  
  
In addition, I just moved back to university today and decided as a treat to put this chapter up for everybody, before class starts tomorrow, hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.  
  
When Ranma mentions to Loki about rule number 34, this is taken from the Evil overlord list at www.eviloverlord.com Rule number 34 is: 'I will not turn into a snake. It never helps.' There are more than 200 rules for prospective evil overlords, and it's always good for a laugh.  
  
Next chapter the story really begins to progress onwards, hopefully.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	11. The Short Trip Home

One Last Chance ch.11  
  
**** The Short Trip Home****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. After meeting their patron god Loki and discovering that they were his chosen, they talked with him while he explained their situation and filled them in on part of the situation they now found themselves in. Ryoga and his companion continue on their travels trying to reach Nerima. Shampoo also heads towards the small ward where our main characters live. At the end of the chapter Loki used two rings to remove something from Akane and Ranma. As we left them last time said balls of energy were floating away from the two and towards Loki's rings. We now join the couple again to see what is happening.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"No"  
  
Ranma gasped as he felt part of his life energy leaving him. He opened his eyes to see a blue ball of his life energy drifting towards Loki and the rings he wore. In his peripheral vision he saw a similar ball drifting away from Akane, the only difference was that the ball leaving Akane was red.  
  
Akane herself was down on her hands and knees struggling to keep from sprawling face down on the ground. Ranma wasn't in much better condition; he was on his knees struggling against what felt like a huge weight pressing down on him.  
  
The balls of energy continued on towards Loki's hands and the rings it wore.  
  
Before Ranma and Akane's eyes, the energy that had been stolen from them entered the rings. As the two balls of energy entered the rings the pressure that was on them suddenly ceased crushing them.  
  
The two gasped in relief as they stood up, leaning on the other for support.  
  
When they finally felt strong enough to do anything besides lean on the other, although that in and of itself was quite enjoyable, they turned to look at Loki.  
  
Loki was examining the two rings he now held. They were still silver, but now one had a beautiful red ruby set in it, and the other had a sparkling blue sapphire in it.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO US," Ranma screamed at the smiling god as he approached them.  
  
"Nothing really, I extracted a part of your permanent chi, don't worry it's a small part, it won't hurt you to be missing it." Loki's voice was calm.  
  
"You just took a part of us and you expect us not to worry, why did you do that," Akane yelled at the god.  
  
"Well I'm going to give you a replacement with an equal amount of energy in it so it wouldn't affect you at all."  
  
"Huh?" Both fiancées exclaimed.  
  
Loki laughed at their befuddled expressions, not failing to miss the hurt, betrayal and anger behind the looks.  
  
Way to go Loki, just go and suck out there energy, what did you really expect them to thank you, you haven't even told them why you did it, oh yeah, you wanted to get out of the square knot she put you in, uh oh, they're looking at me funny, better start explaining before things get worse. Loki mentally berated himself.  
  
"Well you see, I extracted equal amounts of chi from both of you and put them in the rings, now I'm giving you the rings, so that way you get the chi back."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Loki realized he needed to do a better job explaining than that if he was going to get them to understand what he did and why he did it.  
  
"Well I took out your chi and put it in the rings, now I'm going to give the rings to you two as wedding presents. This way you'll both always be connected to the other and be able to carry around a piece of the other with you at all times."  
  
The two staggering fiancées held out their hands for the rings. Loki first gave Akane the sapphire ring and then gave Ranma the ruby ring. The two looked at the rings then Loki and back to the rings, suspicion clearly evident on their faces.  
  
Loki watched on expectantly, waiting for the two to accept his gift.  
  
After a little bit more hesitation both fiancées finally relented and slipped the beautifully forged pieces of jewelry onto their ring fingers.  
  
Both of them waited, glancing from the rings to Loki, back to the rings, and expectantly looking around as if waiting for something to happen to the two of them.  
  
"There now, you see, that wasn't so bad, now was it?"  
  
Both martial artists looked at Loki for a moment before turning to look at each other. Even without speaking they both shared a mutual thought, an evil grin forming on Ranma's face while Akane's eyes sparkled dangerously.  
  
"Oh Loki," Ranma asked.  
  
"Yes child, what is it?"  
  
"The ring fits perfectly now, but what will happen when I change into my cursed form, won't it slip off?"  
  
"Not at all, the rings are magical and yours will resize itself perfectly to fit you. In addition neither ring can be removed without the wearers consent."  
  
Loki sounded pretty proud of himself.  
  
"That's all I wanted to know, thanks."  
  
"No problem, you're wel . . . What are you doing?"  
  
Both fiancées stalked towards the chaos god, vengeance burning in their eyes, but also a small amount of mirth.  
  
"Loki would you please change into a snake again for me, I didn't get to have a good look last time." Akane's voice was saccharine and if Loki hadn't been a god, he would have sworn that he felt a cavity forming.  
  
"Ummm . . . No, I don't think so."  
  
"That's fine one forms as good as another," Akane replied  
  
The pair was really close to Loki right now and the god took a step backwards, even Thor having a temper tantrum wasn't as scary as these two.  
  
"LOKI NO BAKA," the duo's call sounded loud and clear through the forest.  
  
Akane and Ranma then demonstrated that when receiving a divine wrath beat- down, one form really was just as good as another.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jungles of Columbia ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
Two people who we are very familiar with by now are running through undergrowth side by side, dodging past trees and running for all they are worth.  
  
"Ranma this is all your fault," Ryoga yelled.  
  
"Ahhh give it a break already, how the hell is this his fault," Ryoga's companion yelled back.  
  
"If it wasn't for him we wouldn't be here," the lost boy reasoned.  
  
"I didn't see him around when you said, 'hey, why don't we ask those people loading that sugar onto the plane where we are?' where was he when you walked over to them without a second thought and started talking?"  
  
The two zigzagged to avoid the fire from the automatic weapons their pursuers were using.  
  
Ryoga silently cursed Ranma for his problems, his companion just plain cursed as a spray of bullets embedded themselves in the tree ahead of the two.  
  
"Come on, this looks like the right way," Ryoga broke right, breaking through some trees out into what seemed to be a gully. His companion was right on Ryoga's heels, with company just behind.  
  
As the two boys raced down the gully, their pursuers pulled up short and regrouped. They knew this are well, their quarry had chosen poorly, there was no way in or out of this culvert and almost no places to hide. The two foreigner spies would be caught, tortured and killed.  
  
The men began walking down the culvert, checking all the hiding spaces in the place. Soon the two would be caught and taken, and then the fun would begin.  
  
It goes without saying that once the armed men reached the end of the culvert after having checked all the hiding places around they were surprised by the lack of their quarry.  
  
Them men would search until darkness fell, they searched all over the area, but still not a sign of the two they were pursuing.  
  
As night fell they huddled by they're campfire and told of the Wendigo and other dark spirits that lurked out beyond the light of the fire. Spirits, which could vanish without a trace and would lead men to their doom.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Himalayan Mountain Range ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"RANMA SAOTOME, THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"  
  
"WOULD YOU JUST SHUT THE HELL UP ALREADY?"  
  
A loud rumbling filled the air prompting two more outbursts.  
  
"AVALANCHE!"  
  
"RAN-NOT AGAIN!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Tokyo, in the wilderness, morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Oh myself, in the name of all that is chaotic and unpredictable, I don't think I have a single part of me that doesn't hurt."  
  
Ranma and Akane were finishing packing their gear for the trip back to Nerima.  
  
"It was meant to hurt," Ranma growled.  
  
Loki had begun to regret not turning into a snake, rule number thirty four be damned, a human form has a lot more bones that can be affected by being twisted then a snake does.  
  
As it was he would probably win an award at any contortionist convention for his impression of a human pretzel, courtesy of one Akane Tendo and one Ranma Saotome.  
  
"Think he's had enough yet," Ranma asked his fiancée.  
  
"Yeah, I'm not that mad anymore, he just surprised me and I thought he was doing something bad to us. Of course it was a mean trick to play in the first place."  
  
"Hey, it was meant to be payback for tying me into a knot around YOUR fiancée."  
  
Akane walked over to the god and leaned over him.  
  
"So do you want me to untie you or knot?"  
  
Loki bit back the retort he was about to say and just nodded to his chosen.  
  
A few quick twists and pulls that would have made most chiropractors proud and Loki was back into his proper form . . . more or less.  
  
"Well, you two ready to let bygone be bygones," Ranma asked from where the packs were situated.  
  
Loki stood up and extended his hand to Akane who took the hand and pulled the chaos god into a hug.  
  
Putting her mouth close to his ear she whispered, "try something like that again and I'll show you what happens when I get really angry."  
  
Loki chuckled and replied, "don't worry that was a one time only instance, it won't happen again."  
  
Akane pulled away from the hug and smiled.  
  
"Good then it's settled and I forgive you for what you did."  
  
Loki was about to respond with a scathing retort, but upon seeing the frantic gestures for silence and the pleading looks Ranma was shooting him, the god decided better of it.  
  
"Well I guess it's time for you two to head back to Nerima and I'd better get back myself, who knows how much law and order has managed to influence people while I've been gone." Loki struck a pose reminiscent of Kuno, "never fear people, Loki is here to spread fun, enjoyment, and chaos."  
  
With one final wave to Ranma and Akane who were staring at him like he'd grown another head, well actually he had grown two more heads, but lets not quibble about that, he disappeared.  
  
Ranma and Akane stood staring for a moment at the ground where the Chaos god had once stood.  
  
"Well I guess it's time to go home," Ranma ventured still a little shaken as everything that had happened since the chaos god made his appearance into camp.  
  
Akane who was in much the same situation just nodded.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hokkaido, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Hokkaido, thank the gods."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
Ryoga's companion glared at him with a look that spoke volumes.  
  
"Yes, that sign says Hokkaido, from this point on I am going to be the one leading us. I'm sure we can get to Tokyo in no time whatsoever, but if you offer any directions I'm going to staple your mouth shut."  
  
Ryoga didn't like his companion's implications, sure he wasn't the best at finding his way somewhere and it usually took him a tiny bit longer, well actually a lot longer, in fact getting somewhere as far away as five- hundred yards away could take anywhere from four days to a week.  
  
Of course there was that one time where he got to the kitchen from his room in twenty minutes, it wasn't his kitchen, but didn't decrease the splendor of the act. If only the refrigerator hadn't been moved he would have made himself something to celebrate, but some unthinking soul had replaced the refrigerator with a large capacitor and added a bunch of power cables.  
  
"Fine, but I know several short cuts that will help get us there faster."  
  
Ryoga's companion just stared at him with what can only be described as a shocked expression.  
  
"You honestly believe that don't you?"  
  
Ryoga nodded, "of course I do, I can get anywhere," he quietly added in a voice barely above a whisper, "eventually."  
  
"Ok pal, let's try it this way, you follow me, don't do anything, but follow me, never let me out of your sight, don't offer any advice or go your own way. Just. Follow. Me. Got that?"  
  
Ryoga nodded.  
  
The pair started walking for Tokyo, going in the correct direction for once.  
  
Ryoga's companion let out a sigh of relief, soon he'd meet up with the elusive Ranma Saotome and put certain matters to rest, despite Ryoga's random wandering he considered himself lucky, if Ryoga hadn't told him the location of Ranma, it might have been months before he finally located his quarry.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outskirts of Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
They had been walking for most of the morning and were finally entering Tokyo. Neither of the two fiancées had felt like saying much, both were still brooding on the events that had happened over what was meant to be a simple training trip.  
  
Ranma glanced at his fiancée who was walking beside him down the path and gasped.  
  
Hearing her fiancée gasp Akane quickly looked around, but saw nothing noteworthy in the general vicinity; she turned back to Ranma and saw that he was staring at her.  
  
"Ranma, what is it?"  
  
Ranma lifted a hand and pointed at Akane's head, "your . . . hair."  
  
"What's wrong with my hair Ranma," Akane asked reaching back to feel her ponytail.  
  
Her hands passed through nothing. She reached up higher and felt again, she repeated the process till she eventually felt the ends of her hair, much shorter, it hadn't been this short since Ryoga's belt had cut it off.  
  
"My hair," Akane mumbled in disbelief, "When did it, how did it?"  
  
"I have a feeling I know what's wrong."  
  
"What would that be Ranma," Akane growled at Ranma as if he had been the one too cut off her hair, not quite again, but that fight with Ryoga was close enough.  
  
"Well if you remember Loki cast a spell on us that would age our bodies back up to the point we were at, he said it would take a few weeks to two months. So our bodies are progressing at a much faster rate. If you remember, in a few days Ryoga cuts of your hair. Well it looks like everything that happened to us is happening to us again."  
  
Akane sighed, "I wonder how this is going to affect us this time, I'd rather have kept my hair long this time."  
  
"But you look so cute with short hair."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah, it looks good on you, and it's much more efficient in fights than long hair."  
  
"Then why do you keep your hair long?"  
  
"It's not so much a fashion choice as much as necessity. It's the dragon's whisker, if you remember, without it in my hair, I can't change back into a guy without it growing way to fast."  
  
Akane stared at Ranma's face a moment before leaning in and touching something on his cheek.  
  
"What is it Akane?"  
  
"You're right Ranma."  
  
"I am," Ranma was confused, what was he right about this time, and why did she need to tell him he was right if he knew he was, even though he didn't know what it might be which he was right about.  
  
"Yes, remember how Ryoga got you with his thumb and cut your cheek, you have that scar there again."  
  
Ranma reached up and felt the scar he had gotten, over two years it had faded down to nothing, but touching his cheek Ranma felt the new scar tissue although as it was, it was rapidly fading.  
  
"Man, this is going to take some getting used too."  
  
"Don't worry Ranma, as you've told me several times before, we'll get through this together, just look on the bright side of things."  
  
"And what would that be?"  
  
"You don't actually have to go through all those things you went through last time that gave you your scars."  
  
"I hope so Akane, I sure hope so."  
  
Akane started walking again, heading further into Tokyo.  
  
Glancing back, Ranma saw Akane's hair where it had fallen, still tied by a ribbon. Darting back he picked up the lock of hair before continuing on and catching up with Akane.  
  
Together the two continued their walk back to their home and whatever might await the two of them.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Shampoo's camp, outside Osaka ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Shampoo leapt around her camp practicing with her arsenal of various weapons.  
  
She wasn't very pleased with her fighting skills, her trip through China and finally into Japan had been excellent for her tracking and hunting skills, but her actual combat skills had suffered greatly due to the lack of adequate fights. After all, those weakling bandits, thugs, thieves, and rapists who had tried to stop her at certain points hardly counted as a challenge to someone with Shampoo's skills.  
  
As rusty as her skills were, they were still considerable.  
  
Maybe she wouldn't wait as long as she had originally planned before going after the redhead. One way or another by the end of the month she'd have caught up to this Ranma girl and it would be over.  
  
Shampoo began to fume and build up her anger as she thought of all the close calls that had happened back in China. The Ranma girl and her pet panda had almost fallen into her trap time after time, but somehow Shampoo's prey would evade her.  
  
Sometimes it seemed like the panda was even the one helping the girl, it was amazing how skilled in the arts the panda was, but a dumb animal could only be so smart. Maybe she'd take the panda for her own pet after the girl was dead.  
  
The thought of the girl dead was still a sore point for Shampoo, the girl had to die, but Shampoo knew she would regret it when she finally dealt the killing blow to her quarry.  
  
It's best not to think such thoughts, after all, it's the girls own fault that she beat me, she should have known what would happen.   
  
A rustling in the trees behind her made the Amazon warrior turn around, holding the Bonbori she was practicing with in a ready position. Her eyes scanned the trees for any sign of an interloper.  
  
It was times like this that she wished her Japanese was better, she didn't want to call out in Chinese since whoever it was probably wouldn't understand.  
  
A rustling behind her made Shampoo spin and throw one of her two weapons towards the noise.  
  
It was deflected almost effortlessly by the intended target, which spoke to her while chuckling.  
  
"Nice throw child, but there is no need to attack me, I am here to assist in your pursuit of Ranma, I will help you complete your task."  
  
Shampoo not knowing what to say in response to the newcomer just stood there shocked at the ease at which her attack had been deflected.  
  
She was so shocked she didn't even realize the newcomer had spoken to her in Chinese.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Compound, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
It was late afternoon by the time Ranma and Akane got home, the two had made good time on their trip back, both very eager to sample some of Kasumi's home cooking. They were both slightly tired as they had both elected not to stop for lunch or breaks.  
  
"It's good to be home," Ranma stated as the two came to a stop before the front gates.  
  
Ranma rolled his shoulders to work out the kinks that had built up during he walk.  
  
Akane merely nodded, not in as good shape as Ranma she was really too tired to say anything.  
  
The to walked through the gates and entered the house, both too tired to call out their presence  
  
"I wonder what has happened while we were gone," Ranma said, depositing his shoes in the foyer.  
  
There are many things in life which people learn, one such thing is sometimes it's better off not knowing certain details. Ranma is about to learn one such detail.  
  
"Oh Ranma-kun, Akane, welcome home," Kasumi greeted them as they shut the door and were about to head upstairs.  
  
"Hi Kasumi," The pair responded unenthusiastically, they had hoped to get up to their rooms and maybe get a little sleep before going back to school tomorrow, with any luck the Kuno situation would have been sorted out by their discussion and they'd have one less rival/love interest/obsessive lunatic to deal with.  
  
"Oh my, you two look exhausted, if you think you can stay awake for another hour I'll have dinner ready."  
  
"Thanks Kasumi, some good home cooking sounds great right about now, if you'll excuse us though, we need to drop off our stuff and get changed."  
  
"That's fine," Kasumi began to walk back towards the kitchen but turned around before going round the corner, "Oh my, I almost forgot that father and Mr. Saotome would like to see you two once you're ready."  
  
Ranma and Akane groaned as Kasumi turned the corner. The last two times they'd been informed that their parents wanted to talk to them they had ended up almost married to other people or married to each other, all in all the second wasn't so bad, but they just weren't ready yet.  
  
"Thanks Kasumi, we'll be down soon."  
  
The two went upstairs and bathed separately, cleaned up and went downstairs, on guard for anything their parents might try.  
  
They entered the living room glancing from side to side at full alert, just waiting for an assault from any direction. Thankfully the caution was for naught, as Genma and Soun were sitting inside at the table.  
  
Unfortunately sitting there was a person whom they did not want to see.  
  
Kuno.  
  
There were several things apparent immediately to the two martial artists; the first was that Kuno was sitting there in their home smiling his triumphant smile. The second was Nabiki sitting across from him with a scowl on her face. Finally the fact that Soun and Genma had a bottle of their celebration Sake out and that it wasn't yet open.  
  
"Dad, Mr. Saotome, what is Kuno doing here," Akane hesitantly asked.  
  
"Well, this nice young man has come and asked for your hand in marriage," Soun ventured.  
  
"NICE YOUNG MAN," Akane screamed, "This nice young man is responsible for having a horde of boys attack me every day with the hopes of conquering me."  
  
"Surely you can see I had but your best interests at heart fair fiancée."  
  
"Well that's all in the past now isn't it," Soun nervously stated  
  
"But Akane and I are engaged already, to each other," Ranma protested.  
  
"Not anymore son, as it is a matter of family honour I've transferred the engagement to Nabiki so Akane can be betrothed to this young man as they both want."  
  
Ranma and Akane saw red.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Evil villains chuckle manically, evil villains laugh maniacally, and evil villains don't laugh. This makes it hard to explain why at the moment a certain armoured figure was rolling around on an obsidian floor laughing for all the figure was worth.  
  
"You know that really isn't very dignified," the cloaked figure standing off to the side factually stated, although the cloaked figure was very tempted to fall down and break out laughing. Those idiots were just too funny at times.  
  
"I don't care, I thought those fools were going to do something damaging, now all their going to do is get a good ass kicking from the godslayer." The figure continued laughing.  
  
You might be right, but there might be more here then meets the eye. The cloaked figure just stood there staring at the viewing portal.  
  
The armoured figure continued laughing. The cloaked figure's gaze watched the unfolding scene before it.  
  
Only one of the two was laughing.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TBC, End of Chapter 11 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
AN: Well that's this chapter done. Due to school this chapter has taken longer than I expected to complete. I will try to continue at the rate of one chapter a week, but I might have to take a week and a half to get new chapters up.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	12. Engaged to Whom

One Last Chance ch.12  
  
**** Engaged to Whom ****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Loki presented Ranma and Akane with rings that contained a part of the other's essence, the pair of fiancées then decided to return home from the training trip and face the music of whatever may come for them. Ryoga and his companion finally made it back to Japan where Ryoga's companion took over leading the hunt for Ranma so as not to get lost again. Shampoo while training her fighting skills back up also encountered someone who is seeking Ranma. On their way back to the Tendo Dojo, Ranma discovers that their bodies really are aging quickly when Akane's hair is cut in the same way Ryoga's belt cut it. On arrival back at the dojo, Ranma and Akane learn that their parents have decided to switch the engagement from Ranma and Akane to Ranma and Nabiki. Kuno has also convinced their parents to betroth him to Akane.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Home, Nerima, early evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Not a chance in hell pops."  
  
"Boy I'm your father, Tendo and I both agreed this was the best path, since your current fiancée is unwilling to marry you it only makes sense to switch the engagement."  
  
Ranma and Akane both began to glow blue, Ranma tightened his hands into fists, while Akane's left eye began to twitch.  
  
"Listen father, Mr. Saotome I fully intend to marry Ranma, but we both want to wait till we get out of high school before we marry."  
  
"Well there really isn't any reason to wait for that now is there, this fine young man has brought some excellent betrothal gifts and explained how much in love you two were before Ranma came along. This way we can cut costs and have a double wedding. Who knows, maybe I could arrange a marriage for Kasumi with one of my old colleague's son too and all my daughters could be happily married together."  
  
Nabiki groaned, Kuno smiled, Soun and Genma patted each other on the back, Ranma and Akane began to grow brighter, and there was the sound of a cup breaking in the kitchen.  
  
"Of all the schemes you could think of, this has to be the worst one yet. Do you honestly think Akane or I will go along with this."  
  
"You have no say in the matter Saotome, this is between the illustrious Tendo patriarch, the beauteous Akane Tendo, and my noble house. Content yourself with the mercenary Nabiki Tendo for the fairest of the Tendo daughters goes to myself as the better man."  
  
A book thrown by Nabiki bounced of Kuno's head.  
  
"That didn't hurt."  
  
"Listen Kuno, dad, Mr. Saotome," the last name was said in a growl, "I have no interest in marrying Kuno, I am already engaged to Ranma by family honour and by him asking me."  
  
Akane held out her hand with displaying the ring she wore, Ranma did likewise.  
  
"We've already sealed our engagement with this rings," Ranma's voice was cool, but dangerous.  
  
Nabiki's eyes locked onto the rings, she practically drooled as she examined them.  
  
"This is pure platinum, my god, these rings are worth a fortune," she said out loud while thinking, Wow, he must have more money than I thought if he could get her a ring like that . . .wait a minute, if he is becoming my fiancée then I would get the ring. It's beautiful, especially that sapphire.   
  
Genma sat in the background, a tiny amount of drool on his lip as he stared at his son's ring. The boy doesn't deserve a ring like that, how dare he keep the money from me, his own father. Oh what a disobedient child.   
  
Soun nodded sagely, "yes, that is true he did propose to you, but family honour takes precedence over such matters of the heart. Since the engagement between you two is merely between you two and not the families, as the heads of our respective clans, we have the right to break it."  
  
Kuno produced a marriage contract and laid it flat on the table.  
  
"Here is the most noble and just engagement agreement, it has already been prepared and awaits but our signatures to seal this righteous joining of the Kuno and Tendo clans."  
  
Nabiki reached out and picked up the paper, looking it over. She couldn't see any hidden meanings, loopholes, or any other snags that might come up. She raised an eyebrow at the point where Akane Tendo would become Akane Kuno, her little sister wouldn't like that one bit.  
  
"It looks fines to me, I don't see anything wrong with the agreement," Nabiki flatly stated, placing the papers back on the table.  
  
Before either Kuno or Soun could sign the agreement Ranma picked it up to look it over.  
  
"Saotome, have you no honour, interrupting Akane and my declaration of love and the binding of our holy union. How dare you!"  
  
"Quite right son, this is between the Tendo and Kuno clans, as you're now Nabiki's fiancée, this doesn't have anything to do with you."  
  
Ranma ignored the two and shot a look at Akane, sending an unspoken message. Akane picked up on his thoughts and stepped forwards standing between Ranma and the others in the room.  
  
"Listen, this isn't right, I don't want to marry Kuno, I want to marry Ranma, we're just not ready to get married until we are out of High School. I have no interest in Kuno and I can barely even tolerate him, so why would I want to marry him."  
  
"Oh beautiful Akane, you need not hide your feelings for me anymore, soon we shall be engaged and you can show your true feelings towards me."  
  
Akane was about to either attack Kuno or verbally lash out, but Ranma never gave her the chance.  
  
"Fine, if that's the way you want it, sign the paper, if it's family honour I can't stop you from making an engagement that has nothing to do with me."  
  
Akane turned on him and was about to say something when Soun spoke up.  
  
"I'm glad you understand son," Soun grabbed the paper and signed it, placing the family seal on it as well.  
  
Akane watched in horror, unable to move as Kuno took the paper and added his own signature and seal to the contract.  
  
"Well, now that this piece of business is out of the way we can celebrate. I think it would be a good idea if my new son-in-law and my daughter spent some time together," Soun suggested, beaming brightly.  
  
"I agree with you completely Tendo, and this will give my boy a chance to get to know his new fiancée better," Genma added.  
  
Nabiki eyed her sister's ring; it would belong to her now that she was Ranma's fiancée.  
  
"What new fiancée pops, I'm engaged to Akane," Ranma sounded confused, but he had a confident expression on his face and a note of mirth in his voice.  
  
"Nay for with this agreement I am now engaged to the fair Akane Tendo and you are engaged to the money grubbing Nabiki Tendo," Kuno loudly declared.  
  
Ranma took Akane's hand and walked out of the room leaving the others behind them.  
  
"You might want to have another look at the marriage agreement before you go making wild statements like that," Ranma called over his shoulder as he and Akane went up the stairs.  
  
Nabiki picked up the contract to see what Ranma could possibly mean. After a few moments it fell from her fingers, her face frozen in a gasp of shock.  
  
Kuno picked up the engagement agreement to see what could possibly affect someone as unshakable as the middle Tendo sister. Shortly afterwards he was in much the same condition as Nabiki.  
  
Soun picked up the paper that seemed to be paralyzing the room and began reading while Genma looked over his best friend's shoulder.  
  
"Well I don't see what all the trouble is, I say we go celebrate, how about you Saotome," Soun asked, laying the paper flat on the table.  
  
Genma merely nodded, glancing at the paper on the table, I'm sure this is the boy's fault, how dare he, he'd have been better of with the middle sister, she could manage finances better then that female imitation of a martial artist.   
  
Genma grumbled silently as he followed his friend, as an after thought his mind went to the ring his son had been wearing. Well, as his father it's my job to teach the boy a lesson about obedience. He should obey his father after all.   
  
Leaving Kuno and Nabiki frozen where they were, the two old men left the room. Shortly afterwards Kasumi entered the room and saw the marriage contract lying forgotten on the table.  
  
"Oh my, I'd better take this and put it in a safe place."  
  
Kasumi looked over the paper that everyone else had so recently seen.  
  
"My how strange I thought Akane was going to be the one engaged to Kuno."  
  
On the contract, where once the name Akane Tendo had been written were all replaced by the name Nabiki Tendo.  
  
"I never realized Nabiki and Kuno were interested in each other, how nice that this didn't disturb Akane and Ranma."  
  
Kasumi left the room, carrying the adjusted marriage contract. Kuno and Nabiki were left alone, both staring off into space with frozen expressions, which managed to be both shocked and horrified at once.  
  
Upstairs Akane began laughing uncontrollably as her true fiancée filled her in on what names the marriage contract held.  
  
Kasumi finished her chores after tucking away the very important document into a safe place.  
  
The two fathers celebrated, one happy two thirds of his children were now happily engaged, one silently plotting vengeance on an ungrateful son.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Shampoo's camp, Outside Osaka ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
Shampoo sat at her campsite, finishing her dinner and talking with the figure that had entered her campsite to talk to her. The two were currently engaging in a serious discussion. Anyone listening in wouldn't be able to understand the two unless they spoke Chinese. As such they were relatively safe to talk at the level they were.  
  
"Why are you here," Shampoo asked the newcomer.  
  
"I'm here to help you child," came the response from the figure sitting across the fire from the Amazon warrior. The figure was sitting in the shadows, hiding all features from view, except for an outline of the cloaked figure.  
  
"An Amazon huntress is meant to carry out her task alone when she gives the kiss of death. She is not to receive any help from others in her task, unless she has no other choice," Shampoo argued, she wasn't sure who the other figure was.  
  
This stranger's voice was soft and it was hard to tell whether it was a soft-spoken male or a quiet female. Whichever it was, the person kept their voice whisper quiet, but somehow, Shampoo could hear the voice like it came from next to her ear, and not from across a crackling campfire.  
  
The stranger's cloak did nothing to assist Shampoo in her observations. The hood of the cloak concealed not only the figure's face, but the rest of the cloak hid the body from view. Even the figure's hands were covered in black gloves. For some reason the light cast by the fire didn't pierce the shadows of the figure's hood.  
  
Shampoo shrugged such thoughts off. It was beneath her as an Amazon champion to have such fears and worries so insignificant as not being able to see the face of the person she was talking too.  
  
"Don't worry child this is a special situation, you aren't aware of certain facts which you will need to know for hunting this specific prey."  
  
"Ok, I'll listen, but this had better be good."  
  
Although she couldn't see under the hood, Shampoo could have sworn that her companion smiled.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Home, Night ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A couple of hours have passed since Nabiki and Kuno both received the shock of their lives, being engaged to each other.  
  
Ignoring the rest of their family, Ranma and Akane, still happily engaged to each other, had gone to their separate bedrooms, not without a little regret, to get some sleep.  
  
Nabiki and Kuno had eventually come to their senses, wordlessly Nabiki had gone to her room, praying to wake up from the nightmare and Kuno had stumbled home.  
  
Kasumi was asleep in her bed.  
  
Soun was passed out in his own bed.  
  
Genma was standing over his son's futon, staring at the expensive ring, which his son wore.  
  
It's the boy's own fault, I was just trying to look out for me . . . him and try to protect my-our future. He owes me that ring for all I've done for him. I deserve that ring.   
  
If people could hear the thoughts going through Genma Saotome's head, many would believe that he was trying to justify his actions to assuage his conscience. Those people would be wrong, as a matter of fact; this is a standard train of what passes for logical thought. Genma's conscience had been whittled down starting with the training under his master and had effectively died when he first sold Ranma for food.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nabiki's room ~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Nabiki was lying in her bed; she had taken a couple of aspirin to help her with the headache she knew was coming.  
  
Engaged to Kuno, she couldn't believe this, things just kept getting crazier and crazier around Nerima.  
  
First, this panda, which happens to be the father of a boy who turns into a girl shows up and announce that the aqua-transsexual is engaged to one of them.  
  
Then her sister, who hates boys and is a suspected closet lesbian, accepts the engagement to the aqua-transsexual and has no problems with it. What's more her sister acts like she's known the guy for a long time.  
  
Then her sister makes this wild claim that the two of them are from the future and they were sent back in time for kami only knows why.  
  
Nabiki was a skeptic at heart, yet she had no choice but to believe Ranma's curse otherwise she'd be as delusional as Kuno figuring out Akane doesn't love him. As a matter of fact she'd be even more delusional then Kuno, even he'd believe the curse if he had it demonstrated for him.  
  
As for the time traveling story her younger sister had come up with, Nabiki didn't know how she came up with it or why, but it was painfully false, it had plot holes so big that even Kuno's ego could fit through with room to spare.  
  
Nabiki realized that her sister might be so accepting of the relationship, because she really was a closet lesbian and this would give her a chance to indulge freely without anyone knowing about it. Nabiki didn't mind this at all.  
  
What she did mind was the fact her sister seemed to steal every guy that came near her. Nabiki had been hoping that maybe this once, she could get to a guy before her sister, or her reputation as the ice-queen scared the guy away.  
  
Nabiki swore to herself that she wouldn't let her sister steal this guy too. After all, he was a hunk of a guy and he seemed pretty decent, Nabiki wouldn't have minded being engaged to him.  
  
That was why she had convinced Kuno and the fathers to go along with the whole switching of the engagement and new arranged marriage. Convincing Kuno had actually been more difficult then convincing Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum.  
  
Kuno had been convinced of Akane's love for him and that as soon as she could find a way to free herself of being trapped into her engagement she would fly into his arms and share their love. It had taken Nabiki several hours and not a few pictures to spell out to Kuno that since she was bound by family honour, why not make it so the family honour binds Akane to him. Kuno had begun spouting nonsensical poetry and laughing so Nabiki had taken her cue and left.  
  
The old fools were surprisingly easy to convince. Both wanted to get Ranma and Akane married the minute they could subdue the two of them. Nabiki merely had to point out that she'd be more willing to get married sooner than Akane would. Having a husband with a body like Ranma's, what straight girl in her right mind wouldn't want to have a little fun?   
  
It seemed Genma Saotome wasn't too fond of her little sister either and seemed to be quite willing to have the engagement switched. He easily convinced her father that this was the right course. Nabiki had noted that the elder Saotome could manipulate her father very easily. She wasn't yet sure of just how good or bad a thing that was. She would have to watch to make sure his influence didn't get out of hand.  
  
Nabiki was actually thankful that Akane and Ranma had taken their training trip; it gave her enough time to convince the three fools to go along with her plan.  
  
Nabiki thought it had been one of her better plans too, but due to the mistakes in the contract, now she had to find a way out of her engagement with Kuno and get herself engaged to Ranma.  
  
Now she was stuck with the fool and Akane still had Ranma.  
  
Nabiki crawled under her blankets and tried to get some sleep, she'd figure out how to get out of the situation tomorrow. Tonight she needed her sleep.  
  
"AAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"  
  
Nabiki bolted upright as the scream tore through the house.  
  
She raced out into the hall and headed for the guest room where the Saotome's were staying.  
  
As she got to the open door she slowed and stuck her head around the corner.  
  
On the floor was a beaten and twisted Genma Saotome. Above him, standing on the man's back, stood what appeared to be a very angry Ranma Saotome.  
  
"What the hell are you thinking pops, trying to take my ring?"  
  
"What's going on here," Nabiki nearly jumped out of her skin as she heard her younger sister's voice.  
  
She quickly put on her mask of the ice-queen and turned to face her sister.  
  
"Well, it seems like Mr. Saotome tried to take that lovely ring from your fiancée and is paying for it."  
  
"Oh, is that all?"  
  
"I believe so, if you want to know more it will be 500 yen," Nabiki smirked holding out her hand.  
  
"No thanks Nabiki, see you tomorrow, I'm sure you and your new fiancée will want to get to know each other better," Akane called over her shoulder as she walked back to her room. This had the result of leaving Nabiki fuming at her sister, her sister's fiancée, and certain bokken-wielding idiots who couldn't get a contract right if his life depended on it, which it probably had, or at least the life of his pocket book.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Aomori, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"You sure this is the right way?"  
  
"For the last time, you ask me that question again and I will tear off your head and kick it to Tokyo."  
  
Ryoga shot an annoyed glance at his companion, he didn't have to go and say that, it's not like Ryoga was insulting his companion, he just felt that they should be going in a different direction, any direction, but the one they were heading.  
  
Sure his companion had said they were going south and that south was the way to Tokyo from Aomori, but there was a sign that said Aomori right there and Ryoga knew for a fact that Aomori was due East of Tokyo.  
  
We should be going west right now, Ryoga thought to himself while staring east.  
  
Ryoga couldn't help shake off the feeling of wrongness that was upon him. Wisely he decided to keep his mouth shut and the two continued walking towards Tokyo.  
  
Yes actually towards Tokyo not a different direction, against all odds Ryoga was heading in the right direction. The leash he had round his neck that was attached to his companion's hand only had a little to do with this though . . . Actually it was the only reason Ryoga wasn't lost yet, but he doesn't need to know that.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo house, Morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
It was a nice sunny morning in the Nerima district, birds were chirping, barely a cloud in the sky, although that could change in less than a minute. For all appearances it appeared to be a nice and quiet day. We all know what they say about appearances being deceiving.  
  
Genma, who had managed to unknot himself after the brutal mangling he had received at the hands of his son, was ready for a little payback. Watching the sleeping figure of his son, he silently stalked over to the boy's sleeping form.  
  
Hovering over the boy for a second Genma got an evil glint in his eyes. He reached down to grab at the sleeping form of his son who was curled up under his blanket.  
  
Only to find his hands on a pillow that had replaced his son's form.  
  
"O-Y-A-G-I," A soft cooing voice came from above Genma, sending chills through his spine.  
  
Genma looked up, just in time to get a face-full of his son's feet as Ranma swung down from where he had been gripping the ceiling.  
  
The panda man flew through the open window out into the Koi pond. Ranting in panda gibberish about an ungrateful son, water, and food all at once.  
  
As the panda pulled himself out of the water, he looked up, just in time to receive another hit to the face from Ranma. Genma staggered back before trying to take up a ready stance.  
  
The beating Ranma gave Genma over the next minute was truly grotesque, horrifying, and well below what the panda deserved.  
  
"Ahh, nothing like a good workout in the morning," Ranma, still male, said as he walked in and sat at the table.  
  
"Oh my, that was quite a display Ranma-kun," Kasumi said.  
  
Kasumi had never considered herself to be a mean person, but there was something strangely comforting and pleasant in hearing the panda whimper. Kasumi hoped this didn't make her a bad person.  
  
What Kasumi didn't know was that the gods of pacifism, peace, and unconditional love had taken even more pleasure out of the beating Genma had received than she did. As a matter of fact the only god that didn't taken pleasure in the beating was . . . Well actually there wasn't a god who didn't take some kind of pleasure out of seeing Genma beaten. Even the author took pleasure in having Genma beaten, an event he feels will have to become regular in this story, but the author is somewhat of a sadist.  
  
"Yeah Ranma, nice work out there," Nabiki said, admiring the way Ranma's bare arms glistened in the morning light and how his tank top clung to his body.  
  
"GAAHHHH, we're going to be late for school," Akane yelled as she . . . Well she was moving breakneck pace around the house getting ready for school.  
  
Ranma quickly finished his breakfast and stood up, heading for the furo as Akane came into the room. They both slowed briefly to say good morning and share a smile, before heading off to complete their morning routines.  
  
Ten minutes later the two were running down the streets or in actuality fences by the streets of Nerima, heading for Furinkan.  
  
"I sure hope Kuno's not going to be going after you anymore now that he's engaged to your sister."  
  
"I hope so, but remember what happened last time Kuno thought that Nabiki was the one he was going to marry."  
  
Ranma shuddered at the memory, a fortune teller had told Kuno he would encounter the woman he was destined to marry at a certain place and time. The person happened to be Nabiki. Kuno had begun to pursue her, but couldn't decide what to do about Akane and the pigtailed goddess. In the end he declared Nabiki would be his wife while the pigtailed girl and Akane would be his mistresses.  
  
Ranma still shuddered at the memory of Kuno's declarations of love.  
  
They neared the gates of Furinkan, neither sure whether they would be preparing themselves for a nice leisurely run to class to avoid the tardy bell, or a Kuno beating coupled with bucket duty.  
  
"You realize that if you stopped fighting with your father in the mornings, we wouldn't always be late, don't you," Akane asked Ranma as they ran along on top of the fence, leaping down as one so they ran beside each other.  
  
"Yeah I know, why do you think I've started pounding him in the mornings rather than just sparring with him. He hates pain and if I keep this up maybe he'll eventually give up on his Saotome Surprise Sunrise Strike," Ranma shook his head, why did his father have to come up with such long winded names for techniques that could be better named 'ambush', 'groveling', or 'running away', "I figure a few more days of it and he'll give up and stop bothering me, then you and I can spar peacefully instead."  
  
Akane smiled at the memory Ranma's words evoked, last time it had taken her mallet and a lot of time to convince Mr. Saotome that she was good enough to spar with his son. Genma could never understand how the girl could never lay a foot or finger on him, but that mallet never failed to catch him, or the dumbbells she'd throw or the Shinai she'd carry, or any other weapon/house hold object Akane would pull out of nowhere. He almost regretted calling Ranma sloppy for being hit by them, but then realized it must have been his son's fault and cheered up.  
  
"Don't worry, whatever we face through those gates we'll face them together," Akane told her fiancée, reaching down and giving his hand a squeeze.  
  
"You're right about that," Ranma replied, returning the squeeze with his own hand.  
  
With a shared breath they turned into the schoolyard.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ South of Aomori, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Are you sure this is the right way?"  
  
"ARGGHHHH, That's it your dead."  
  
"Come on."  
  
The two rushed each other; a punch from Ryoga accidentally knocked his companion over the side of a very steep incline. Unfortunately for Ryoga he was still attached to his companion and very quickly found himself going over the edge too.  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"  
  
"AAAAAAAAARanmathisisallyourfaultAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH."  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
"You know, I almost feel sorry for that idiot panda, but that was just too funny to watch," the cloaked figure chuckled slightly to itself.  
  
The armoured figure didn't share the other's sense of humour, "I don't find this situation quite as amusing as you seem to."  
  
"And why would that be, might it have something to do with those harmless rings that the godslayer and his mate are wearing?"  
  
A slight amount of anger entered the armoured figure's voice, "you know damned well that's what I am talking about, those rings are more than they appear, Loki must of put a piece of the other in it, I can't tell if he put a piece of their soul, life energy, both, or something else into the rings. I can also tell that there is something dormant in those rings, something hidden from their bearers. I don't know what Loki's done, but this disturbs me greatly."  
  
The cloaked figure had no response to the vehement tone the armoured figure used.  
  
"We might be forced to act sooner than I thought," the armoured figure said, settling down slightly and leaning back into the obsidian throne.  
  
"All the players are not yet on the stage though, are you sure it is wise to push forwards so soon?"  
  
"Positive."  
  
"Only fools are positive."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive."  
  
The two figures laughed.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 12, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
An: Well that's another chapter of the story done. For those of you who think that Nabiki wouldn't be interested in Ranma or a fiancée and believe this might be out of character, remember that she dressed up in a Kimono and prettied herself up when she learnt there was a fiancée coming. She also was quite eager to meet the fiancée, standing up and running to the door when she heard them arrive. Finally, throughout both the series and manga, when Nabiki interacts with Ranma she is constantly flirting with him and not just when she wants something.  
  
For anyone interested in the geography of the situation, Aomori is the northern most part of the Tohoku region, immediately south of Hokkaido. It is North of Tokyo. Osaka on the other hand is west of Tokyo.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	13. All in the Family

One Last Chance ch.13  
  
**** All In the Family ****  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. After going off on a training trip, Ranma and Akane come home to learn their parents tried to change the engagement to a Kuno/Akane, Ranma/Nabiki engagement. This situation was caused by Nabiki who wants Ranma for herself and Genma who has taken a dislike to Akane. For some reason, the marriage contract actually engaged Kuno to Nabiki. Genma tries to steal the ring Loki gave Ranma and gets mangled by his son as punishment. Ryoga and his companion are heading for towards Tokyo from the North. Shampoo is camped out West of Tokyo in Osaka. Ranma and Akane were heading for school and about to pass through the school gates.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Furinkan High school, Morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane turned into the schoolyard; for once a truly spectacular sight greeted them.  
  
No Kuno. Kuno wasn't there waiting for them. This revelation almost stunned the two into stopping in their tracks. Almost.  
  
The two ran into the school and made it to class with a whole two minutes to spare.  
  
Ranma and Akane sat at their desks, both happy that they didn't have to stand in the hallway for once.  
  
"Ranma, I was wondering something, Nabiki is pretty shrewd and if anything else a business woman, how could she have missed something as big as her name being on the contract instead of mine."  
  
Ranma chuckled, "that's quite simple Akane, your name was on the contract."  
  
"Then how was it that Nabiki was the one that ended up being the one who is engaged to Kuno and I still have you?"  
  
Ranma reached into his sleeve and pulled out a piece of paper. He handed the paper to Akane.  
  
Upon inspection, she realized it was the marriage contract from last night.  
  
"How come you have this?"  
  
"Well, I couldn't exactly let Kuno become your fiancée while I'm your fiancée, now could I?"  
  
"Then what was the contract that my father and Kuno signed?"  
  
Ranma chuckled again, "oh don't worry, that was a real marriage contract. Pops always carries one on him in case he needs to sell me for some reason. I guess this time it paid off. I just took one from him and then while you made a distraction I switched the contract and wrote in the names Tatewaki Kuno and Nabiki Tendo in all the right places."  
  
"How did you do all that so quickly?"  
  
"Remember that martial arts calligraphy match I was in, well it helped my penmanship quite a bit, coupled in with a revised Kachyuu Tenshin Amaguriken and I had myself one marriage contract for one Nabiki Tendo and one Tatewaki Kuno.  
  
Akane laughed, "Serves her right, I can't believe she'd try to do something like push me off on Kuno. She knows how much I dislike him."  
  
"Well Akane, it looks like just for once something is going right for us."  
  
Akane stared at her fiancée in shock before hanging her head.  
  
"Ranma, you shouldn't have said that. You really shouldn't have said that."  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Well we're finally in Tokyo, I can't figure out how though."  
  
"I told you that it was a short cut."  
  
"Shut up, you just got lucky for once. It should have taken us two days at least to get from Aomori to Tokyo and yet we're here now after you knocked us off some cliff, it doesn't make sense," Ryoga's companion grumbled.  
  
"Hey you were the one who knocked us over the edge of the cliff. You should have let go of the rope that was attached to me," Ryoga yelled  
  
"If you hadn't knocked me off we wouldn't have fallen," Ryoga's companion was fuming now.  
  
"If you hadn't attacked me in the first place none of this would have happened."  
  
"That's because you wouldn't shut up. You had to keep saying Ranma Saotome this, Ranma Saotome that. I know we're looking for him, but could you just SHUT THE HELL UP ABOUT RANMA SAOTOME."  
  
Ryoga was about to yell back at his companion when a new voice interrupted them.  
  
"Excuse me, but you wouldn't happen to be talking about Ranma Saotome, the son of Genma Saotome would you?"  
  
Both boys turned to the voice to see a beautiful woman standing there looking at them, wearing a pristine Kimono. Over her shoulder she had some long object wrapped carefully. She had a kind smile on her face and seemed to radiate femininity and happiness.  
  
"Ummm yeah, that's him," Ryoga's companion dumbly replied.  
  
Ryoga just nodded.  
  
"You don't happen to know where he is would you," the desperation and hope was clearly evident in the woman's voice. Neither boy could bear to disappoint her by not telling.  
  
"Yeah we do, he should be in Nerima right now, he's going to school at Furinkan high," Ryoga's companion stated.  
  
"If you don't mind me asking miss, why are you looking for someone like Ranma," Ryoga asked.  
  
A glint of anger came into the woman's eye at Ryoga's last words, causing both boys to flinch.  
  
"I have some business with him and his father, but I haven't seen him in more than ten years. I was wondering could you two please tell me what you know about him?"  
  
"Sure I guess."  
  
"Ok."  
  
Neither boy could bring himself to refuse the woman's gentle yet commanding tone. It was almost like there was a little magic behind her words. She favored them both with a smile.  
  
"Thank you, if you'd like we can go and sit down in that café over there and talk." The woman began walking towards the table. Both boys dumbly followed her without thinking.  
  
The three sat down at a table in the café, the two boys waiting for the woman to be seated before seating themselves. The woman ordered some tea and snacks for the two boys.  
  
"So, why are you after Ranma Saotome?"  
  
"I have my own reasons," Ryoga's companion replied, "If it's all the same I'd rather not share them."  
  
The woman frowned a little, but seemed to accept his response before turning her gaze to Ryoga.  
  
"And why are you after Ranma Saotome?"  
  
Ryoga's companion sighed and cast his eyes heavenwards. He knew what was coming.  
  
"Ranma Saotome sent me to hell and ruined my life," Ryoga began to rant.  
  
His companion was familiar with this rant; Ryoga even muttered this particular rant in his sleep or when they were walking. So he settled down into his seat and sipped his tea as he watched to see what the woman thought of his companion's rant.  
  
He wondered why she kept gripping the bundle, which she carried at times during Ryoga's monologue and her face-hardened ever so slightly and her eye occasionally twitched.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Furinkan High School, Lunch ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Hey Nabiki, we'd like to talk to you."  
  
Nabiki turned away from her group of underlings and looked at the source of the voice.  
  
Her sister and her sister's fiancée were walking towards her; actually it seemed more like Ranma was gliding towards her while Akane was stomping a warpath towards her.  
  
Putting on her best business face Nabiki dismissed her underlings and moved to meet the two.  
  
"What can I do for you little sister?"  
  
"Nabiki, how the hell could you even think about engaging me to Kuno?"  
  
"Whatever do you mean Akane, surely I have no idea what you're talking about," Nabiki replied in a cool tone, but shifted to a more dangerous one, "if you hadn't forgotten, I'm the one who is now engaged to the idiot."  
  
"You wouldn't be in this situation if you hadn't tried to break me and Ranma up."  
  
Nabiki was getting irritated at her sister's words and tone.  
  
"Well you're not engaged to him-"  
  
Akane's cut her sister off, "No sis, but if I was I would have been stuck with the psycho and be forced into a marriage that I don't want and couldn't possibly enjoy."  
  
"Listen sis, you aren't engaged to Kuno, and even if it had been you, do you honestly think I'd have forced you into an engagement with him if there wasn't a way out of it?"  
  
"Huh," both Ranma and Akane asked.  
  
"In the marriage contract, I made sure to write in a clause at the end which said, 'should either party involved be dissatisfied by or with the engagement they may call off the engagement, effectively nullifying it.'"  
  
Both Ranma and Akane gaped at the middle Tendo sister.  
  
"What, did you honestly think I wouldn't have covered the different angles?"  
  
"That still doesn't excuse you for trying to take Ranma from me. I mean what do you see in him?"  
  
"Hey," Ranma began to protest before being cut off by an elbow to the gut.  
  
"Shut up baka," Akane whispered before turning back to her sister, "Nabiki, he and I are happy together and we are in love. There is no way you can break us up."  
  
Akane turned and marched away from her sister, Ranma in tow behind her.  
  
As they walked away Nabiki honestly began to reconsider her plan to get Ranma. Yes the rings were worth a fortune, but that didn't necessarily he had money; maybe he found them or stole them somewhere on his trip. Nabiki also knew Ranma would inherit the dojo with whoever he married, and while Kasumi and Akane would probably have no problem with staying at home and playing housewife, Nabiki on the other hand wanted to go out into the world and make both a name and money for herself.  
  
Maybe it wouldn't be the best thing tied down to someone like Ranma, but at the same time she didn't want to be tied down to someone like Kuno either. Well it was about time to break the marriage contract anyway.  
  
Nabiki was about to go find Kuno to inform him when an idea struck her; maybe I can use this to my advantage after all. I mean, I am Kuno-chan's innazuke, let's see what I can get out of him to make me break the engagement.   
  
A new idea came to Nabiki, while Ranma might not have money on him, that didn't mean she couldn't use him to make money. First she'd see what he was capable of and then, a little book keeping on fights Ranma might get himself in. There were so many possibilities to make money open to her now.  
  
Nabiki chuckled to herself, after all, Nabiki Tendo doesn't giggle, so that only left a little evil chuckling. Several people who heard Nabiki chuckle shivered and decided they should be elsewhere at that moment.  
  
Ranma looked over his shoulder and leaned down to whisper into Akane's ear.  
  
"Ummm Akane?"  
  
Akane stopped and looked back at her fiancée who was looking rather nervous at the moment.  
  
"Yes Ranma, what is it?"  
  
"Well, you know how I told you that I changed the contracts around?"  
  
"Yes, and?"  
  
"Well, the standard contract pops used didn't have Nabiki's clause in it. Think we should tell her?"  
  
Akane looked back at her older sister and saw her chuckling to herself as people moved away from her.  
  
"I think we should let her figure that one out for herself, then maybe she'll be less willing to interfere with us next time around."  
  
The two walked off to enjoy their lunch together, leaving their sister/sister-in-law to her own devices.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"I can't believe Ranma ran away from our fight, thanks to him I've seen hell. How cowardly can a person be? He's a pathetic excuse for even a coward. He-"  
  
"So my son has behaved in a most unmanly way has he," the woman asked startling both boys.  
  
Ryoga stopped in his rant at hearing the word 'son'.  
  
His companion sat upright from where he had been drifting in and out of sleep. A person can only hear a rant so many times before it gets old. As soon the woman said son he was wide-awake and paying attention  
  
"What do you mean son?"  
  
"I am Nodoka Saotome, mother of Ranma Saotome and wife of Genma Saotome."  
  
Neither boy knew what to say to that particular piece of information. For the past god only knows how long Ryoga had been sitting there insulting and degrading Ranma and it seemed that he had been degrading none other than Ranma's own mother.  
  
"Where is Ranma right now," Nodoka's voice was still calm and polite, but there was a new dangerous undertone to her voice.  
  
Ryoga's companion took over talking, giving Ryoga a chance to sip some tea and cool down.  
  
"As far as we know, Ranma is in the Nerima ward of Tokyo, going to school at a place called Furinkan High. We were in the process of tracking him down."  
  
"You still haven't explained why you are after my son."  
  
"I have my own reasons which I don't really feel like sharing with anyone but Ranma. Believe me though; it's a good reason."  
  
"Very well, thank you for talking to me gentlemen, however disheartening it has been, I thank you for your time," the Saotome matriarch stood up and bowed to the two boys who stood up and returned her bow.  
  
Mrs. Saotome paid for their repast and turned to leave.  
  
"Excuse me ma'am if you don't mind me asking, where are you going to now that you know where your son is," Ryoga's companion asked.  
  
Nodoka stopped and stood still for a moment before turning around to face the two she had talked to. Both boys noticed tears that she was withholding in her eyes.  
  
"I'm going to Nerima, and I fear I go to end the Saotome line."  
  
Leaving the two boys shocked into immobility Nodoka walked down the street away from the two and towards Nerima.  
  
"Somehow I think she took what you said badly," Ryoga's companion stated as soon as he regained the proper state of mind to do so, after the woman was out of sight.  
  
Ryoga could only nod in reply.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Furinkan High School, Afternoon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Thank god that's over," Ranma muttered.  
  
We join our two main characters as they pack their bags to head home from school. The two are leaving the building at the moment, talking.  
  
School had been almost normal. Ranma and Akane had almost gone through a normal day of school that other teenagers all over the country went through . . . Almost.  
  
During lunch a crowd of girls had crowded around Akane cooing over her ring, telling her how lucky she was to have a hunk like Ranma as a fiancée, asking her what he's like, and causing a general nuisance for the most wanted girl in school.  
  
The guys had crowded round the new guy who had come out of nowhere, stealing the most wanted girl in school, beating the school's champion, and disrupting the abnormal swing of things at Furinkan. Of course, years later the students without a single dissenting opinion would all agree that things were actually normal before the arrival of the pigtailed martial artist.  
  
They had asked less polite questions than the girls. Usually something along the lines of; how far have you gotten, what's she like in bed, have you *&#$ed her, and even less polite questions than that. Ranma's only reprieve came in the form of Hiroshi and Daisuke who helped Ranma get rid of the worst of the crowd. Afterwards they proceeded to have a pretty decent conversation where Daisuke and Hiroshi avoided mentioning Akane for the most part and mostly asked Ranma questions about himself. Ranma had thanked them and the three had proceeded to their physical education period.  
  
Ranma had demonstrated his physical prowess in gymnastics, impressing his class. Unfortunately the girls chose that day to play softball and Ranma had the misfortune of being distracted while watching Akane when she was up to bat. As a consequence of his inattention, he received a softball in the face.  
  
That's why they were leaving at current, Akane walking Ranma to the clinic at their teacher's behest. To make sure Ranma made it to Dr. Tofu's ok and without collapsing.  
  
"Ya know, this all seems very familiar to me for some reason, but for the life of me, I can't figure out why."  
  
Akane looked thoroughly dejected.  
  
"I said I was sorry Ranma," Akane's tone was gloomy. How the hell did I hit him, I wasn't even aiming for him. Why did this have to happen again?   
  
Ranma looked over at Akane, she really did seem repentant about hitting him with the softball. The fact that she was walking on Ranma's left and capable of seeing the results of her handiwork weren't helping either.  
  
"Don't worry about it Akane, it's not like you killed me or nothing."  
  
The words were hardly out of his mouth before he regretted phrasing his sentence that way. Tears began to well up in Akane's eyes at the mention of Ranma dieing.  
  
"Ahh, geez Akane, I didn't mean it that way, what I meant was I'm fine, it will take a lot more than a little softball to cause me trouble."  
  
"Well I guess that's why," Akane mumbled still looking miserable.  
  
"Why what Akane?"  
  
"Why I hit you, with a head that big I'd have more trouble hitting the broadside of a barn," Akane's eyes still had tears in them, but at least she was now wearing the ghost of a smile.  
  
"Yeah that's-HEY, what do you mean by that?"  
  
Akane laughed and took off running for the clinic, Ranma following behind her, not trying to catch her, but not losing any ground either.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Northwestern edge of Nerima, Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Thank god we made it, after you took off away from Tokyo I thought we were going to spend another week trudging around Japan till we got back here."  
  
The two came out of the woods overlooking Nerima. After the woman calling herself Nodoka Saotome had left their sight, Ryoga took off after her, managing to get the pair out of Tokyo in a surprisingly short amount of time. Thankfully his companion had taken off after him and stopped Ryoga before he succeeded in leaving the country.  
  
"Finally we've arrived in Nerima. Now Ranma you will suffer for all you've put me through."  
  
Ryoga bent down and picked up a rock.  
  
"Ranma, I will crush you as easily as I crush this rock."  
  
Ryoga squeezed the rock into gravel while laughing maniacally.  
  
"Umm Ryoga, you might not want to stand there," his companion tried to point out the sign that Ryoga had clearly ignored. It wasn't a very important sign . . .  
  
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH," but since the rock Ryoga was standing on gave out and he was currently rolling down the slope he had so recently been standing on.  
  
"Never mind, at least he didn't blame Ranma for that one."  
  
A weak voice came from the bottom of the slope, "Ranma, I'll get you for making my life hell."  
  
"Damn, looks like I spoke to soon."  
  
Ryoga's companion began to pick his way down to where Ryoga lay. Ryoga for his part was lying under some rocks cursing Ranma, himself, Ranma, the gods, Ranma, his sense of direction, Ranma, the ground, Ranma, Ranma, and Ranma.  
  
"Don't worry Ryoga, I'm coming," as he spoke and made his way down the slope towards his directionless companion, preparing a new coil of rope as a leash while he went.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dr. Tofu's clinic, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
Tofu greeted Ranma and Akane as they entered the clinic.  
  
"Ahhh, Akane-chan, Ranma-kun, how are you doing today, that looks like a nasty mark on your face. Mind if I take a look at it?"  
  
Tofu escorted the two into his examination room where he took off the bandage on Ranma's cheek.  
  
"That's quite a bruise Ranma, looks like Akane's handiwork."  
  
"I'm sure it was an accident Dr. Tofu, I'm sure she didn't really mean to do it," Ranma quickly replied while watching Akane who was intently watching the floor tiles shamefaced.  
  
Tofu seemed to pick up on Akane's mood, which wasn't very difficult as she was almost generating an aura of despair in her current state. He turned to face her while letting Ranma apply the cream Tofu had given him. The boy seemed very familiar with the process of treating his own wounds as he did it quite well.  
  
"Akane were you really the one who hit Ranma with the softball. I was only joking."  
  
Tears slid down Akane's cheeks as she threw her arms around the doctor.  
  
"I hurt him Doctor, I keep hurting him."  
  
Tofu patted the crying girl on her back. Not that he'd admit it to her, but she had gotten exceedingly lucky that she hit Ranma and not someone else. The sheer power that was behind the softball would have probably dislocated if not broken a normal person's jaw and knocked out quite a few teeth. This Ranma had to be something special to have nothing more than a bruise from the strike.  
  
"Shhh Akane, don't cry, I'm fine, you don't keep hurting me, I just don't know when to duck, how else do you think you got me with that damned mallet all the time. I'm tough enough to take whatever you give me. Don't cry. You know as well as I do that nothing's going to stop me," Tofu was shocked to hear the kind words from the pigtailed boy, as it was Tofu was trying to come up with words of his own to comfort Akane.  
  
Maybe he's good with saying the right words at the right times, Tofu thought as Akane separated from him and went over to her fiancée's open arms. Ranma made soothing sounds as he held Akane, rocking gently.  
  
"After all, a tomboy like you has nothing on someone like me," Ranma joked. Unfortunately he chose a poor time to exercise his less than impeccable sense of humour.  
  
"RANMA NO BAKA," Akane yelled as she judo tossed Ranma into the clinic wall, shaking the clinic, putting cracks in the wall, and silencing a foolish pigtailed martial artist.  
  
Or maybe I could be mistaken, Tofu rethought as he went over to check on his patient, again.  
  
Surprisingly Ranma was on his feet before Tofu even reached where he lay.  
  
"Gomen Akane, Gomen," Ranma even though he felt like screaming 'what did you do that for you kawaii (he hadn't been able to refer to Akane as kawaiikune since she kissed him in the bath) tomboy', he didn't although it had been a long and difficult process; he had managed to gain minor control over his mouth. This control was very fragile and failed quite frequently, but for some reason it managed to work just often enough to keep Ranma alive.  
  
"I'm sorry too Ranma, I shouldn't have thrown you across the room."  
  
Tofu watched the pigtailed boy pick walk over to his fiancée. He shouldn't be able to do that; he should barely be able to walk.   
  
Ranma wrapped his arms around his fiancée who wrapped her arms around him. He shouldn't be able to do that either, at least one of Ranma's arms should be dislocated if not broken.   
  
Ranma bent his head to put a kiss on Akane's forehead. He definitely shouldn't be able to do that, that boy should have a concussion from the force of Akane's throw.   
  
Tofu was brought out of his contemplation by Ranma's voice.  
  
"Thanks for the cream Doc," Ranma called to the Dr. as he and Akane began to walk out the door.  
  
"You really should come over to the dojo some time, I'm sure we'd all be happy to have you," Akane said as she gripped Ranma's arm.  
  
Tofu was able to collect his thoughts in time to call out his own goodbye before the two disappeared.  
  
With the two marital artists gone Tofu turned to look at where his most recent patient had been sitting.  
  
This is definitely going to require some thought, I'm going to have to watch this Ranma Saotome, and I have a feeling that things are going to be getting a lot more interesting around Nerima.   
  
"Well looks like I'm going to have to spend some serious thought on the issue," Tofu stated out loud.  
  
"Hello, is anyone here?" A gentle, soft, caring voice drifted in from the waiting room.  
  
Tofu's glasses fogged up and all rational thought fled his mind as he turned around.  
  
  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nerima, Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"You, where's Furinkan High School," Ryoga barked out, grabbing a boy wearing a school uniform who was passing by him.  
  
"Umm, turn your head to the left Ryoga," Ryoga's companion said with a sigh.  
  
Ryoga turned his head to look, "what, I don't see anything?"  
  
Ryoga's companion reached over and turned Ryoga's head so he was looking left rather than right.  
  
"Furinkan High School," Ryoga read out loud looking at the sign on the wall.  
  
"Yes, finally Ranma, I will have my revenge for what you've put me through."  
  
"You mean hell," his companion helpfully stated.  
  
"Yes actually, RANMA SAOTOME BECAUSE OF YOU I'VE SEEN HELL."  
  
"Umm, I hate to interrupt, I really do, but would you mind letting me go," asked Daisuke staring fearfully at the two people in front of him.  
  
Unfortunately by talking Daisuke brought Ryoga's attention back to himself.  
  
"Where is Ranma Saotome," Ryoga growled.  
  
"He and his fiancée went home earlier today."  
  
"That coward, running away from his punishment."  
  
"Ryoga, does he even know you're chasing him?"  
  
"No, but that still doesn't mean he can run away from me."  
  
Ryoga's companion put his head in his hands and groaned.  
  
Daisuke was merely staring in horror at the monster in front of him who just put his fist through a brick wall. He began saying a silent prayer to any kami that would listen.  
  
"Listen Ryoga, why don't you just put that guy down and we can find somewhere to stay tonight. Then we can just see Ranma tomorrow when he shows up," Ryoga's companion calmly stated, while inside he was fuming at this turn of events, You've spent this long searching for him, another day won't be too much to ask now will it?   
  
"Grrrrrrrrrrr."  
  
"I said why don't you put him down, I don't imagine he's enjoying you holding his shirt like that."  
  
Ryoga forced his grip to loosen on the shirt until the boy could worm his way out of Ryoga's vice grip. Daisuke sighed in relief and turned to leave, only to find a hand on his shoulder impeding his progress. He tried to ignore the hand and keep going, but the hand's grip didn't waver.  
  
Daisuke turned back to face his tormentor and found that this time it wasn't the oni wearing the black and yellow bandana that was restraining him, but the oni's companion.  
  
"Yes, can I help you," Daisuke was able to bring himself to ask, regretting his words the moment he said them. The evil grin his new tormentor was wearing didn't help his feelings of dread one iota.  
  
"As a matter of fact, yes, I'd like to talk with you for a little while, if that's ok with you?"  
  
Daisuke managed a slight whimper before the two demons that were obviously sent to torture him dragged the unfortunate boy off towards his doom.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo home, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
It was a mostly normal evening at the Tendo residence. The type of normal where the majority of the world is used to, sitting around relaxing like the everyday normal family does. Not the normal for the Tendo dojo which usually consists of something life-threatening, magical, mystical, mysterious, strange, and always property damaging.  
  
Mostly meaning that most families don't have a huge panda playing Shogi with a hyper-emotional man who happens to be a martial arts master, three girls each skilled in their own particular arts who are putting those arts to good use, and an aqua-transsexual currently male pigtailed martial artists who was doing a fair imitation of a bouncy rubber ball with the way he/she was flying around the family dojo.  
  
* RING, RING, RING *  
  
"Hello, Tendo Dojo," Akane answered the phone as she was the one closest to it.  
  
She listened to the other voice for a few moments as the other party went through proper introductions.  
  
"Oh, hello Daisuke, how are you?"  
  
"WHAT? WHO DID WHAT," Akane screamed into the phone, attracting the attention of the rest of the house and bringing Ranma in from the Dojo. A whimper could be heard from the phone as Daisuke expressed the pain Akane's not so quiet words caused. Even the plastic of the phone's receiver squeaked slightly as Akane's grip intensified.  
  
"Ok, so they were looking for Ranma?"  
  
Akane's eyes caught Ranma's as she spoke into the phone.  
  
"An Oni? With fangs and a yellow and black polka dot bandanna?"  
  
Ranma frowned slightly and Akane nodded, causing Ranma to frown even more.  
  
"What, there were two of them, can you describe the other one?"  
  
Ranma's eyes opened wider in surprise at this piece of news, as did Akane's. The rest of the family was just sitting there listening to the half of the conversation, which they were able to.  
  
"Evil eyes, ok, anything else you remember, no, just the evil eyes? What colour were they? EVIL ISN'T A COLOUR." Akane yelled into the receiver causing all listening to wince at the volume of her tone.  
  
I hope Daisuke doesn't go deaf, Ranma thought, but wisely kept his mouth shut.  
  
"Are you ok? Good, what did they ask you?"  
  
Akane listened to the phone for a while as Daisuke explained what had happened.  
  
"Anything else? No, ok. Don't worry I'll tell Ranma. Yeah don't worry; we'll get them back for you. Bye Daisuke, yes I'm sure you can talk to him tomorrow."  
  
Akane slammed the receiver down loud enough to make everyone but Ranma wince.  
  
"Ranma, we need to talk," Akane said glancing at her fiancée.  
  
"Yeah I think we do," Ranma replied, a grave look on his face.  
  
Akane led Ranma upstairs to her room. Leaving the rest of their family downstairs, puzzling over what the phone call could have been about.  
  
A few moments later the family gave a mutual shrug and returned to what they were doing before Akane's not so quiet voice had interrupted them. Everyone that is, but Nabiki who waited to hear her little sister's door slam shut. An evil grin spread on her face as she heard the door shut.  
  
"So what did Daisuke want," Ranma asked after Akane closed the door to her room.  
  
"Ryoga's here," Akane simply stated.  
  
The two went and sat down on Akane's bed, Ranma leaned his back against the wall and opened his arms. Akane sat beside him and leaned into his arms, resting her head upon his chest.  
  
"Well at least he's on time for once," Akane joked.  
  
"Yeah, but what about the person with him?"  
  
"I'm not sure, Daisuke said it was a guy with an evil glint in his eyes."  
  
"That really doesn't help much, with our history of Jusenkyo, magic, and transvestites there's no telling what sex whoever it is could be," Ranma was only half-joking. After Herb, Ukyo, Tsubasa, Konatsu, and others Ranma was always careful to try and find out the sex of his opponent before he fought them.  
  
"The evil glint doesn't help much either, all it tells us is the person has two eyes," Akane added in her own joke trying to lighten the mood which was getting heavier by the moment.  
  
"I hope I don't have to deal with Ryoga as an enemy this time around."  
  
"How are you going to make him give up his quest for vengeance? He was pretty hell-bent on getting revenge right up until the end last time round."  
  
"I don't know how, all I know is that I don't want him as an enemy."  
  
"What's the best way to get rid of him as an enemy then?"  
  
"We take Sun Tzu's advice on how to eradicate an enemy."  
  
Akane quirked an eyebrow and looked back at Ranma curiously, she never knew he read anything without being forced.  
  
"And how would that be Ranma?"  
  
"Simple, make the enemy into an ally."  
  
"And how are you going to do that?"  
  
"I don't know, I'm hoping to come up with something by lunch tomorrow at the latest, but preferably before we get to school in the first place."  
  
"Why lunch?"  
  
"If this person Ryoga has is leading him around and helping him, I'm not so confident that he'll arrive as school lets out like last time. There are so many changes that will happen and are happening this time around I want to try and be prepared for whatever comes."  
  
"That's impossible Ranma, there's no way we could have known Ryoga would meet someone this time round that would help him."  
  
"That's not it Akane, the point is we actually haven't interacted with Ryoga yet, nothing should be different about him this time. If this was going according to the proper timeline then Ryoga should arrive tomorrow alone as we're leaving Furinkan and attack me from above like he did last time," Ranma was obviously getting frustrated.  
  
Akane turned and planted a kiss on his lips to keep him from saying anything else. After a couple minutes of kissing, Ranma had relaxed.  
  
"Thanks Akane, I needed that."  
  
Akane giggled, "well it was either kiss you or slap you and since I've already done hit you with a softball and thrown you into a wall, I thought it was past time for a kiss."  
  
Ranma sighed, "thanks, but you know what they say, bad stuff comes in threes, maybe it would have been better if you had slapped me then whatever came next wouldn't be as bad."  
  
"You actually believe in that old wives tale," Akane asked giving Ranma an incredulous look.  
  
"If you live my life, you learn to believe in those type of thi-OUCH," Ranma blurted out as he felt something hit his head.  
  
Akane giggled and tossed her mini-mallet away.  
  
"What was that for?"  
  
"Well since you believe bad stuff comes in threes then I decided to let you off with a little tap from my mallet."  
  
Ranma nodded grudgingly while chuckling, "yeah, I guess that mallet of yours would round everything out after all. Now how are you going to make it up to me for hitting me all those times?"  
  
"Well I have a few ideas on the subject at hand," Akane cupped Ranma's face with her hands, "or in this case the subject in hand."  
  
She pulled Ranma close and the two shared a passionate kiss.  
  
An hour or so latter Ranma returned to his own room to get a good night's sleep for what looked to be a busy day tomorrow.  
  
As he went back to his room he never noticed Nabiki slipping back into her room.  
  
Now, who is this Ryoga exactly and how much of his story is similar to Ranma and little sister's story.   
  
Nabiki Tendo, the Ice Queen of Furinkan High School vowed to herself to get to the bottom of this mess and find out what was really going on with her little sister and her little sister's fiancée.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere Else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
"Nabiki could prove to be either a hindrance or an asset," the armoured figure mused aloud.  
  
"Yes she could, but the problem is deciding which one she could possibly be. Nabiki is a truly impressive person; there are few people out there as self-serving as she is. We're just fortunate that she has given up trying to get the godslayer for her own," the cloaked figure replied with what might have been a smirk.  
  
"Yes, that is quite fortunate for all involved, but she still bears way to much interest in those two than is healthy."  
  
"Well what did you expect? She is Nabiki Tendo; she is probably one of the two beings who meddle in the godslayer's life more than Loki."  
  
"I don't think anyone would be able to meddle in the godslayer's life than that old fool. After all he's had sixteen years to freely meddle in his life without anyone but the occasional act of god to keep the godslayer alive and sane," the armoured figure's tone bore quite a bit of anger within it.  
  
"That's true, but that is the past, it would be best to turn our gaze forward towards the upcoming events. Tomorrow will be a busy day for the godslayer. He has quite a lot to prepare for and that's just his rivals, who knows what he'll have to deal with from his supposed allies. Things are progressing very quickly."  
  
"Too quickly if you ask me, I can't believe Ryoga ran into Nodoka Saotome, she wasn't meant to come into the picture for quite some time yet."  
  
"And whose fault is that, it was due to you redirecting Ryoga that he ran into the other two. Now we have to deal with those two ahead of time, there is no way to predict what effect this will have on the timeline."  
  
"We could always try to go back in time and give Ryoga another nudge to see if he goes the right direction this time."  
  
"That would be a very bad idea. Any attempt at time travel would be noted by the others and it would bring unwanted attention on us, besides there's no guarantee that things would be better off with Ryoga going a different direction, there's no telling who or what he might run into.  
  
"You're right, besides, the reader's would kill the author if the last six chapters were all suddenly meaningless and he delayed the plot by sending them back on another five chapter training trip."  
  
"Yes I believe you're right and I'd rather not fade out of existence with no author to write me in."  
  
The armoured figure shrugged its shoulders, "I'm sure things will turn out adequately in the end."  
  
"How can you be so positive about that?"  
  
"Simple, I still have an ace up my sleeve that I haven't played yet."  
  
The armoured figure began laughing.  
  
The cloaked figure really wasn't in the mood to laugh due to the sheer number of times the chapters have ended with them laughing and went back to watching the events unfold.  
  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 13, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
  
  
  
An: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
One of the readers had a strong objection to Nabiki and the contract she set up between Akane and Kuno. He has said that he won't be reading any more of this story due to the fact Nabiki wouldn't force her sister like that. If he is bothering to continue reading into this chapter he would have learnt that Nabiki put in a clause where her sister could escape from the engagement. This leads me to one suggestion to other readers; never assume you know what I am going to write. I love mysteries, foreshadowing, and generally confusing people by leaving unanswered questions, which I will eventually answer.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	14. Allies, Enemies, or Both

One Last Chance ch.14  
  
**** Allies, Enemies or Both ****  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Ranma reveals how he switched the marriage contracts, engaging Nabiki to Kuno rather than Akane being engaged to the Kendoist. Nabiki is now stuck in an engagement to Kuno. Ryoga and his companion have finally made it to Tokyo, unfortunately they ran into Nodoka Saotome upon their arrival and Ryoga portrayed Ranma as a coward and unmanly. Nodoka left to find Ranma and Genma. Ryoga and his companion arrived at Furinkan to learn that they missed Ranma. After roughing up Daisuke, the two left and decided to come back the next day. Daisuke phoned Akane and told her that a couple of martial artists were looking for Ranma. Now we return to see how our hero handles this latest set of challenges placed before him.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House, Morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
We join the Tendo household on a nice bright sunny Nerima morning.  
  
"AHHHHHHH."  
  
* CRACK *  
  
"Oh god NOOOOOOOOOOOOO."  
  
* SLAM *  
  
"Mercy, Mercy PLEASE."  
  
* Whimper *  
  
"You'll . . . pay . . . for . . . this . . . boyAAAAAYYYYYYYY."  
  
* SPLASH *  
  
"Growwf GROWF GRRRRR."  
  
* THUMP *  
  
* CLANG *  
  
"(Censored Panda talk)"  
  
* CRACK SLAM THUMP SCREAM WHIMPER *  
  
Ranma walks in from outside, whistling cheerfully and dusting off his hands, and sits down at the breakfast table next to Akane and joins the Tendo family in their meal. He ignored the whimper coming from the Panda in the yard.  
  
Akane greeted Ranma cheerfully and then resumed her eating. She really didn't like the moaning panda much anyway for all the things he did to his son over the training trip that the two went on so she wasn't very likely to care about the panda's plight and was actually enjoying it to an extent.  
  
Nabiki was still disoriented and half-asleep as such and since she wasn't much of a morning person as it was. Neither did she think much of the Saotome patriarch/panda anyway, nor was she much of a sympathetic person to other people's plights. As such, she just ignored  
  
"Oh my, I guess Mr. Saotome will want a different breakfast now," Kasumi blankly stated, and using her skills in the anything goes school of homemaking, pulled out a plate of bamboo and placed it on the table.  
  
Soun stared at the sight of his oldest and best friend laying on the ground whimpering. The overly emotional man was torn between two different courses of action. On one hand there was responding to Genma and on the other hand responding to Ranma. If that wasn't a difficult enough decision, he had to break those up into two different choices of actions which he wasn't sure which to do.  
  
If he responded to Genma, he wanted to bemoan both the rough treatment of his friend and his friend's suffering. Soun was sure that he'd cry over the harsh treatment of his friend should he choose this path.  
  
Then there was responding to Genma a different way. He felt like going out and slapping his friend on the back and congratulating him on how well he had raised and trained his son. Soun was positive that should he congratulate his friend, he'd break out in tears of joy at his friend's teaching skills.  
  
Of course there was Ranma to respond too. Soun knew it was only proper to berate Ranma for being so disrespectful to his father and throwing him all around the roof, yard, walls, pond, dojo, street, and block before depositing him outside the doors. Soun knew he would cry in shame at how a boy could mistreat his own loving father so.  
  
Finally there was responding to Ranma in a different manner. The Tendo patriarch was only too impressed by the ability the boy displayed, after all Genma was one of the best martial artists Soun knew and Ranma had just thrown the Saotome School's master around the roof, yard, walls, pond, dojo, street, and block as if it were an easy task before depositing the dripping panda in a broken heap outside the doors. Soun suspected he'd cry in pride over his son-in-law's mastery of the school of anything goes martial arts.  
  
Soun's higher functions were unable to deal with a choice of such great magnitude. This error caused the Soun Operating System, an unreliable and even more error prone system than any unbugged version of Windows, which has been aptly dubbed the SOS, to move into standby until the unrecognizable error was dealt with in a manner, which would allow the SOS to restart. Until such time the SOS shut down all higher functions and placed his body so only the autonomic systems were running.  
  
To sum up the previous statements, Soun sat their eating breakfast and seemingly more oblivious than even Kasumi on her foggiest day.  
  
"Come on Ranma, let's go to school," Akane said, putting her bowl down and running for the kitchen to grab her bento.  
  
"Sure Akane, right behind ya," Ranma replied, not really having much of a choice as Akane was pulling him along by his pigtailed.  
  
The two grabbed their bentos and headed out the door for another day of school.  
  
"Oh my, I wonder why Ranma and Akane wanted to leave so early today. Do you know Nabiki," Kasumi asked, looking back from where the dust the two had kicked up was dispersing to where her younger sister sat.  
  
Only to see that her younger sister wasn't currently occupying the spot where she usually sat.  
  
"Bye sis, I need to get to school," Nabiki yelled as she shot past her older sister, racing to get to school.  
  
"Nabiki, you forgot your lunch," Kasumi called after the rapidly retreating form of the middle Tendo sister, "oh my, I hope she doesn't go hungry," Kasumi said as the dust kicked up by Nabiki settled, "I'm sure someone at school will share with her, maybe even her fiancée."  
  
Kasumi smiled vacantly, her good cheer justified for now.  
  
A quiet whimpering came from the yard.  
  
"Oh my, I'd better heat some hot water for Mr. Saotome."  
  
Looking at the twisted and mangled panda as she passed, a thought came to her.  
  
"Maybe I should call Dr. Tofu to have a look at Mr. Saotome, I'm sure the doctor will take care of him."  
  
The panda merely whimpered.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Do you think Ryoga will be there before school," Akane asked as the two ran along the fence, heading for grounds of Furinkan High.  
  
"I have a feeling he might be there, but if he has someone helping him, there's no way for us to know when he'll arrive," came Ranma's reply, confusing Akane.  
  
"What do you mean Ranma, if Ryoga regularly gets lost on his own wouldn't someone who was helping him find his way mean he'll get to where he's going faster than if he was going just by himself."  
  
"That's usually true, but even normal people get lost regularly and Ryoga's bad sense of direction has a way of distorting things, how else would he get lost so much."  
  
Akane shot Ranma a disbelieving look.  
  
"Ranma, just because Ryoga has a bad sense of direction, doesn't mean that everyone around him will get lost, that's hard to believe."  
  
"It's not just that Akane, people can get lost too, if this guy hasn't been to Nerima before he might get lost and end up somewhere else."  
  
"Ranma, this fight is very important to Ryoga, and I imagine it's important to whoever is traveling with Ryoga as well, I don't think they'll get lost."  
  
"Yeah I guess you're right Akane."  
  
The two turned and entered the gates of Furinkan High School.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere in Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Are we lost?"  
  
"You of all people have no right to ask that question," Ryoga's companion spitefully replied before looking around.  
  
"Well, do you know where we are?"  
  
"We're still in Nerima, I know that much."  
  
"And just why are you so sure, with you leading we could be anywhere," Ryoga smugly stated, it felt good to know that for once it wasn't his fault that he was lost.  
  
In response his companion just pointed to a sign a few meters from them.  
  
Ryoga glanced at the sign, "It's a newspaper sign, so what?"  
  
"Read the letters idiot."  
  
"Nerima Local Times," Ryoga grumbled to himself, "but you still got us lost."  
  
"Ok, so that's what, one for me, eighty-seven for you?"  
  
"SHUT UP," Ryoga yelled.  
  
"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO."  
  
"Umm why are you laughing," Ryoga asked his companion, as soon as he heard that voice, shivers went up his spine.  
  
"You mean that wasn't you laughing," Ryoga's companion asked, pushing down the instinct that said, 'run and don't look back'.  
  
Ryoga shook his head.  
  
"Well peasants, what are you doing, intruding upon your betters," a high- pitched feminine voice asked.  
  
The two boys began looking around for the first time actually taking note of where they stood. Around them were a lot of girls all wearing what appeared to be catholic schoolgirl uniforms. They also appeared to be standing in the yard of quite a fancy school. Standing a little ways away from them was a long black haired girl wearing one of the uniforms she looked quite impatient.  
  
"Well peasants, are you going to answer me," the girl asked again, she appeared to be getting irritated by their lack of an answer.  
  
"Are you talking to us," Ryoga asked, causing his companion to groan at the sheer stupidity of Ryoga's statement.  
  
"Who else is she talking to, she's standing in front of us, looking right at us, and there's no one within four meters of us, who else could she possibly be talking too?"  
  
"Shut up, or else I'm going to . . ."  
  
"BOTH OF YOU PEASANTS BE QUIET," the girl yelled.  
  
Both boys turned to look at the yelling girl. Both could have sworn they saw steam coming out of her ears. Visibly calming herself the girl spoke again.  
  
"Now peasants, what are you doing here?"  
  
"Where is here," Ryoga asked  
  
Wow, I didn't think he could say that any other way than 'where the hell am I', I'm impressed thought Ryoga's companion.  
  
"You are at St. Heberke's school for girls, I am Kodachi Kuno, the black rose of St. Heberke and star of the rhythmic gymnastics marital arts world. HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO."  
  
Both boys cringed at her laugh.  
  
"We're looking for Furinkan High School."  
  
"HOHOHOHOHOHO, so you're looking for my brother are you, well then he's that way," Kodachi pointed her club out in a direction behind the two boys who both blinked. Where did she get that club?  
  
"Umm thanks," both boys replied as they took off. Neither was sure what was more important, getting to Furinkan and finding Ranma or getting away from the crazy girl who was laughing insanely behind them.  
  
Taking to the roofs the two began roof hoping in the direction Kodachi had pointed.  
  
"Soon Ranma, soon I'll pay you back for making my life hell," Ryoga muttered.  
  
His companion who had gotten used to Ryoga's ranting a long time ago just ignored Ryoga and concentrated on getting to Furinkan, there was no way he was going to let the lost boy make fun of him for getting lost again.  
  
Kodachi stood watching the two bounce off.  
  
Hmm, both of them are quite attractive, and those fangs make that one boy look quite dangerous. Maybe I should go visit my brother today.   
  
Another thought came to Kodachi.  
  
"After all, I do have a match with the Furinkan rhythmic gymnastic team anyway, it would be appropriate if I went and greeted them in my special manner to the competition. HOHOHOHOHO Yes that would be appropriate," Kodachi began laughing while the rest of the school just walked past her, giving her a wide berth.  
  
Students at St. Heberke had learnt long ago not to bother Kodachi, as it tended to prove hazardous to one's continued health. As a matter of fact teachers had also learnt not to Kodachi as it proved not only to be hazardous to one's health, but also their career.  
  
Kodachi looked over to another student on the gymnastics team, as she happened to be trying to pass, catching her wrist with a ribbon that had taken the place of the club she was carrying.  
  
"You, tell my teachers that I will be back soon, I must go greet our competition in an appropriate manner."  
  
"Yes Captain Kodachi," the girl managed to get out, thanking the gods that that was the only thing Kodachi wanted from her.  
  
"HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO," Kodachi took off bouncing over the roofs ribbon twirling behind her, as she headed for her brother's school.  
  
Her classmates and teachers just watched her go, silently thanking the kami for their brief reprieve from Kodachi's antics for at least one day.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Furinkan High School, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Well they haven't arrived yet," Ranma stated as he walked besides Akane out of their classroom, heading outside to eat lunch.  
  
"No, it's quite strange, I would have expected them to be here this morning, but they'll be here by tomorrow, I'm sure," Akane, walking beside Ranma, replied as they neared the doors to the outside.  
  
"I hope so."  
  
"You actually sound like you want Ryoga to get here," Akane questioned.  
  
"Yeah, well he always was a good fight, and when he wasn't trying to punish me for some slight against you or him, he was actually a pretty good guy that helped us out of quite a few tough scrapes."  
  
"And slept in my bed."  
  
Ranma chose to keep his mouth shut to avoid the hammer he knew Akane could summon in an instant to crush him with. Forcibly keeping down the Saotome open mouth insert foot technique Ranma just kept walking towards the door.  
  
The two stepped outside and began walking over to the spot they usually sat out to eat lunch.  
  
The two sat down with their backs against the tree, side by side, and opened up their bentos.  
  
"So Ranma, you going to do better in school this time around," Akane asked, poking Ranma with her chopsticks.  
  
"Sure, I mean I've already been through all this once, so it'll be a lot easier," Ranma smugly replied.  
  
"Only if you can keep your eyes open and your head up, baka," Akane said, lovingly wrapping her fiancée on his head.  
  
"Geez, Ok Akane, I will, just don't hurt me ok," Ranma laughing said.  
  
Akane laughed with him.  
  
Ranma reached over to put his arm around Akane's shoulder, but instead pushed her aside roughly.  
  
"Hey what was that for," Akane yelled, looking back to where Ranma sat.  
  
Only to find herself face to handle with an umbrella, which was firmly embedded in, and sticking out of the tree where they had been sitting up till a few seconds ago.  
  
"Still good at running away I see Ranma," Ryoga stated, walking across the courtyard towards where the pair was now sprawled out.  
  
"Ryoga," Ranma growled.  
  
Akane blinked, Ranma had planned on greeting Ryoga and trying to be friendly, that was definitely an unfriendly voice.  
  
"Glad you remember the man who's life you ruined, Ranma because of you I've seen hell and I've come for vengeance," Ryoga growled back.  
  
Ranma stood up, reaching over and pulling Ryoga's umbrella out of the tree as easily as Ryoga had thrown it.  
  
Ranma glowered at Ryoga as he stood up, a faint battle aura forming around him.  
  
"Just tell me one thing Ranma, why did you run out from our man to man duel?"  
  
Ranma opened his mouth to speak when Akane was up, past the pigtailed martial artist, and in Ryoga's face.  
  
"What do you mean he ran out, you are the one who ran away, you were three days late for the duel," Akane yelled into Ryoga's face, causing him to take a few steps backwards due to the sheer force of her words.  
  
Ryoga was stunned that someone would take Ranma's side of the argument; after all it was Ranma who ran away wasn't it?  
  
"When I showed up on the fourth day, Ranma had run away like a coward."  
  
"That means you forfeited the duel by not showing up on time for it," Ranma said, gripping the handle of the umbrella so tightly his knuckles turned white.  
  
"Do you think I was out for a casual stroll, you have no idea what I went through to get there?"  
  
"Ryoga, it was the yard behind your house."  
  
"SHUT UP RANMA, I told you, I got lost, you know I have trouble getting to places, if you knew I was going to get lost why didn't you lead me there?"  
  
Ranma didn't look quite as angry as he did before; he walked up beside Akane to face Ryoga, still carrying the weighted umbrella over his shoulder. If Ryoga noticed that Ranma was carrying his heavy umbrella over one shoulder and with one hand like it was nothing, he didn't show it.  
  
"Ryoga, how would it look if the person you were supposed to fight lead you to the place where we were meant to duel," Ranma asked, genuinely interested in what the lost boy had to say.  
  
"Well I guess that makes sense, I mean- . . ." Ryoga suddenly realized that he was agreeing with his enemy and the cause of all his suffering and yelled back, "THAT DOESN'T MATTER, you should have waited another day."  
  
Ryoga's constant blaming of Ranma over the two years they'd known him, even though she'd only just encountered him a few minutes ago, had begun to really irritate Akane especially since Ryoga's blaming of Ranma reminded her of all the time she had blamed Ranma for things that weren't his fault. Akane decided to cut in before Ryoga could continue; she hoped her calm touch could keep things from getting worse.  
  
"STOP BLAMING RANMA, if you knew you were going to be four days late, why didn't you leave a day or four earlier, or why didn't you schedule the fight later. You forfeited the duel by not showing up on time," Akane yelled at Ryoga, causing him to step back again. Maybe an irritated Akane isn't the best thing to calm down an aggravated Ryoga, as a matter of fact; a rampaging boar would be more effective at calming Ryoga down.  
  
Ryoga's mind was currently trying to grasp the concept that something wasn't Ranma's fault and that there was more to Ranma leaving all those years ago. The Ryoga OS chose this moment to perform a stack dump and go along with firmly established base algorithms while the CPU rebooted.  
  
"Ranma, for what you've done to me, I will have my vengeance," Ryoga lunged forwards towards Ranma, fist cocked to strike at his face.  
  
Only to have Akane step in front of his fist, uncaring of the new obstacle Ryoga kept going at his target, a red haze covering his vision, blocking out everything, but his target, which just happened to be Ranma.  
  
Akane saw the Ryoga barreling towards her, seemingly oblivious to her presence and dropped into a defensive stance waiting for him to get close enough.  
  
Ryoga still oblivious to the possible threat, continued his charge towards Ranma, ready to shoulder block the obstacle between him and his target out of the way.  
  
Akane saw the shoulder block coming in Ryoga's bull rush. He was almost in range, almost, almost, just another half second.  
  
And then Akane was sprawled on the ground where Ranma pushed her. Looking up she saw Ranma had thrust Ryoga's umbrella out at Ryoga and Ryoga had taken it on his shoulder, the compression had splintered the umbrella.  
  
"What suffering have I caused you Ryoga," Ranma asked between clenched teeth.  
  
"How dare you ask that question Ranma, all you need to know is that because of you I've seen hell? Ranma prepare to die," Ryoga replied, pulling back his fist to deliver a blow capable of breaking rock.  
  
"DIE!!!!!" Ryoga yelled bringing his fist forwards, or at the very least attempting to, only to discover his wrist was being held in someone's hand, amazingly the person was able to hold him back.  
  
"WHAT DO YOU HAVE AGAINST RANMA THIS TIME," Akane yelled, making Ryoga step back and turn so he was standing beside Ranma.  
  
"AND YOU RANMA, HOW DARE YOU PUSH ME OUT OF THE WAY, I could have taken him, I'm a marital artist too," Akane yelled at Ranma this time.  
  
The enraged blue-black haired girl began yelling at the two martial artists, baking them both back into the tree where they couldn't back up any further from the enraged female martial artist.  
  
"Ummm, who are you," Ryoga meekly asked, he had never been very good at dealing with girls, and now that he wasn't focusing on Ranma, but dealing with this girl, Ryoga's brain began stumbling around.  
  
"I'm Akane Tendo, heir to the Tendo Dojo," Akane hotly replied, annoyed at Ryoga for having ignored her earlier and angry at Ranma for having treated her like she was a fragile little girl and not the martial artist she was.  
  
"Why are you protecting Ranma," Ryoga asked, brining a scowl to Ranma's face.  
  
"I'll tell you why if you'll tell me why you're trying to kill him," Akane tersely stated.  
  
Ryoga for the first time since seeing Ranma became aware of just where he was, looking around he saw a very large crowd of students gathered around the three of them, watching eagerly.  
  
I can't reveal my dark secret here, but this girl has made it so I can't just attack Ranma without a reason.   
  
Ryoga looked around and saw that Furinkan's wall was pretty close to where he was standing. Ryoga made a run for the wall, shouting over his shoulder, "Ranma, your punishment has been delayed for now, enjoy the brief stay of execution, I'll be back."  
  
With his statement he ran out of sight, into the school building. Several loud crashes were heard as he ran through a few walls and out the other side of Furinkan.  
  
"Well that was pointless," Ranma muttered, watching Ryoga disappear in a cloud of dust.  
  
"RRRRAAAANNNNNMMMMAAAA," Akane growled, sticking her face into his field of vision, but only a few inches away.  
  
The flickering blue aura surrounding his fiancée was the first thing that tipped Ranma off that Akane might not be too pleased with him at the moment.  
  
"Ummm, yes Akane," Ranma answered in a tone equally as meek as the one Ryoga had used earlier when he had to face Akane's wrath.  
  
"Why did you push me out of the way just a moment ago?"  
  
Akane's fingers began to twitch and Ranma could see the vague outline of a mallet flickering in the air.  
  
"I didn't want you getting hurt Akane."  
  
"So you think I'm some china doll that would break, I can take care of myself, I'm a martial artist too."  
  
"Not against Ryoga you wouldn't, even if you're more skilled in the art than him, he's still a walking tank even without the breaking point training, and I'm not even sure if you're more skilled than him yet," Ranma replied with more force, given strength by the conviction of his words.  
  
Akane however wasn't willing to let her fiancée off so easily, "When will I be good enough Ranma, will you always fight my battles for me, how am I meant to get better if you don't let me fight for myself?"  
  
"Fine Akane, if that's the way you feel about it, as long as the next person to attack us isn't Ryoga, I'll let you deal with them, ok?"  
  
"Promise Ranma," Akane asked, she knew this probably was the most she could get out of him, but just the chance to prove herself to Ranma was something Akane really wanted.  
  
"Sure," Ranma replied, and then almost immediately kicked himself, he had just given his word of honour that he would let Akane take the next person who came along, what if the next person was someone like Herb or Saffron, Akane wouldn't stand a chance, "but if things are going bad and your in trouble I will step in," Ranma hastily added.  
  
Akane's mood went from delighted as soon as Ranma consented, to irritated when he amended his promise.  
  
"No Ranma, next one is mine and mine alone, I don't want you watching over my shoulder for the rest of my life. PLEASE, just let me do this," Akane pleaded, doing a full puppy-dog eyes attack coupled with a slight gathering of moisture and pouty lips.  
  
Ranma's iron resolve, coupled with his mastered soul of Ice technique, and many years of training lasted a full half-second against his fiancée's devastating assault.  
  
"Ok," he said, barely managing to keep himself from reaching out and comforting Akane.  
  
"Thank you," Akane's appearance did another about face as the moisture disappeared, the pout became a heart-warming smile that could melt ice, and her eyes shone with joy.  
  
"No problem," Ranma replied, distracted by her smile and in a semi-stupor, as he still hadn't recovered from her devastating series of emotional assaults.  
  
"Let's eat lunch quickly before the period ends," Akane suggested, still beaming brightly.  
  
"Ok," Ranma answered, still a little distracted as Akane led him back over to the tree they were sitting against.  
  
The two of them sat down and continued their lunch, pointedly ignoring damage to the tree and the gawking crowd that was still around them.  
  
From his place on the roof Ryoga's companion had watched the entire scene unfold.  
  
"Hmm, Ranma Saotome, you're pretty good, maybe even better than me. I'll have to think about how to approach this situation if I am going to get what I want. Too bad I passed up the chance with his mother, I probably could have passed myself off as Ranma to her, after all, I am pretty manly myself."  
  
Ryoga's companion sat on the roof, watching as the two finished their lunch and went inside.  
  
"No point in just running in like Ryoga did and tearing up the place. I think I'll watch Saotome for a while," Ryoga's companion smirked, "then I'll go running in and tear up the place."  
  
He turned around to see that strange girl Ryoga and he had run into earlier that day when they were looking for Furinkan and ended up at that St. Heberke School. She appeared to be using the distraction Ryoga's arrival and the subsequent conflict to be sneaking into the gym.  
  
Sneaking being a very loose term if a person could consider a tall longhaired girl dressed in a very nice formfitting leotard bouncing around while twirling a ribbon behind her. He could practically hear her maniacal laughter even though she wasn't laughing right now.  
  
He briefly considered going to check out the situation, but decided against it, it wasn't any of his business what went on around here, and all he was here for was Ranma.  
  
With that thought in mind and as the tardy bell rang Ryoga's ex-companion left.  
  
I could probably pull of a pretty good impression of Ranma off if I had too. Too bad I didn't think of that earlier, I could probably have passed myself off as Ranma to his mother, which would probably make things easier. Oh well, no use crying over wasted chances.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Osaka, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Where the hell am I now," Ryoga screamed.  
  
This was just great, not only had the streets moved on him again making him lose his way, again, but also his traveling companion had wandered off and gotten himself lost.  
  
"Geez, how does he expect to find Ranma without me to guide him," Ryoga asked no one in particular.  
  
Ryoga was getting frustrated, it was getting dark and he was tired, Ranma and that girl Akane's words had been haunting him all day.  
  
Was it possible that it wasn't Ranma's fault, but it had to be Ranma's fault he left early, no not early, Ryoga had been late, and Ryoga had to chase the pony-tailed martial artist to finish their duel.  
  
He knew he shouldn't blame Ranma for the curse he had received; he hadn't even seen Ranma from the time shortly before the duel and today. If anyone was to blame, it was that red-haired girl wearing the gi and her panda. She was the one who pushed him into that cursed spring, but that was the only time Ryoga had ever seen her, he hadn't heard a word about her again except when the spring guide's daughter told him that she and her panda, he hated that panda for trying to cook him, had taken off with the spring guide heading towards some Amazon village. It seems that Ranma and his father had gone with them, so Ryoga had decided to follow. He had found an Amazon village, but the headhunters there had chased him through the forest, it had been a nightmare with the sheer amount of water that was under those huge trees. He had been more than happy enough when he had stumbled out of that jungle and into the nice dry sandy desert.  
  
He knew Ranma was a coward, running from Ryoga like he had, but Ryoga couldn't blame him for that. Running from his just wrath was the only smart thing to do.  
  
"Ranma, I'll be there soon and then we can settle this," Ryoga said, punching a tree off to his side.  
  
A female scream sounded as the tree fell. Ryoga looked over, but didn't see anything besides a girl bathing in a nearby stream.  
  
Wait, girl, stream, bathing, and girl is naked when bathing, I'm in trouble.   
  
Ryoga grabbed his nose to keep a stream of blood from escaping and making him bleed to death.  
  
The girl began growling and stood up, forcing Ryoga to apply more pressure to his nose as the quantity of blood trying to escape increased drastically. The girl pointed her sword at Ryoga.  
  
Wait, she's naked, where did she get that sword from? Ryoga idly thought while backing up, he also mentally noted that somehow her she was a natural lavender.  
  
The lavender haired girl growled out, "You I kill."  
  
Ryoga wasn't quite sure what to do, so he just ran away, not wanting to hit a girl, and not wanting to die from blood loss.  
  
I wonder if this is Ranma's fault too? Ryoga wondered, albeit not particularly angry for some reason.  
  
Ryoga ran through some bushes with the girl gaining on him, as she wasn't encumbered by a backpack or clothes for that matter.  
  
Shampoo burst through the bushes looking for the pervert who was peeping on her. She listened to the sounds of the forest while carefully looking around the surrounding flora, but couldn't see nor hear where the pervert might have gone.  
  
Looking down, she saw that his tracks seemed to just disappear into thin air.  
  
Shampoo walked back to finish her bath, muttering about perverted nature spirits.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima, After School ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"You want to do anything special tonight Ranma," Akane asked, walking in front of the pigtailed martial artist on the fence.  
  
"Not really, I just want to get home, train, eat dinner, and get some sleep. We'll be getting Ryoga's challenge in a day or two, until then things should be pretty quiet."  
  
"Don't forget your homework, I'm not going to marry some illiterate baka."  
  
"Yes dear."  
  
Nabiki walking on the ground by the fence fought to suppress a laugh, Ranma sounded just like her father did whenever mother wanted him to do something he wasn't looking forwards to.  
  
"You sound occupied Ranma-kun, is something wrong," Nabiki asked.  
  
"Yeah, I'm wondering who the person with Ryoga is."  
  
"There wasn't anyone with Ryoga though," Akane pointed out.  
  
"That's why I'm worried, Daisuke said there was someone with Ryoga and that the person was also looking for me, if he or she wasn't there today I have a feeling there is a reason we didn't see them."  
  
"Huh," Akane and Nabiki chimed in.  
  
"My enemies usually just show up and try to beat me, if there's someone using there head, we're doomed," Ranma ignored the face-faults from his two walking companions.  
  
"Well we can concentrate on that later, right now you should be paying attention to Ryoga, he didn't really listen to what we said and seems to still want his revenge on you," Akane reminded him  
  
"I know, but all I can really do is beat him the next time he shows up and hope he'll give up his little quest for revenge," before Akane or Nabiki could say anything else Ranma put in, "anyway we're home now, let's just enjoy a nice relaxing evening."  
  
Ranma opened the gate and walked in. As soon as he was through the gate he ducked a blow aimed for his head, catching the offenders arm and throwing them into the wall.  
  
Looking over Ranma saw his father lying in a slumped heap against the wall.  
  
"Getting sloppy pops," Ranma taunted as he and Akane walked to the house, leaving Genma in a heap and Nabiki staring in shock at how fast weird things tended to happen around Ranma.  
  
"Boy, you don't want to go in there, trust me, my-our lives depend upon it."  
  
Ranma ignored his father's pathetic cries and continued into the house.  
  
"Tadaima," Akane and Ranma called as they entered the Tendo home.  
  
"Ranma, you have a visitor," Kasumi answered the two.  
  
Ranma glanced at Akane who just shrugged; the two followed Kasumi into the dining room and stopped.  
  
Sitting there at the table was his mother. Feelings of love, panic, dread, and a few other emotions he couldn't catalogue surged up within Ranma.  
  
"M-mo-mother," Ranma managed to get the word past the lump in his throat.  
  
"Hello son, please sit, I believe it is time for us to talk," Nodoka's voice was colder than Ranma or Akane could remember and she had a dangerous glint in her eyes.  
  
The two moved and sat opposite the Saotome matriarch.  
  
"Ranma, it is time for us to discuss a certain pledge you made before you and your father left all those years ago."  
  
The feelings of dread and panic began winning over in Ranma as his mother spoke, but he just sat there tight lipped while the colour drained from Akane's face.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere Else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"This does not bode well for the godslayer," the cloaked figure intoned.  
  
"You can say that again," muttered the armoured figure.  
  
"How do you think this particular development will turn out?"  
  
"With that honour bound bitch things can't go well."  
  
"Well that is to be expected from a Tormite," the cloaked figured acknowledged.  
  
"Expected, but not wanted."  
  
The two watched as Nodoka Saotome mentioned a particular contract that affected all of the members of the Saotome family.  
  
"Oh Hades," both figured exclaimed.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 14, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
A Tormite is a follower of Torm, Torm is the god of duty from Forgotten Realms, and somehow he just seemed appropriate for Nodoka.  
  
As for the pony-tailed comment by Ryoga, in the series Ranma has a ponytail up to the point where he eats the dragon's whisker. After that since he has to have the dragon's whisker, he wears his hair braided.  
  
Hopefully with the latest clues I've dropped there are some people out there who can figure out who Ryoga's traveling companion is.  
  
Well Kodachi has now been introduced to the storyline, she'll make her appearance to the other characters soon enough.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	15. The Love of Mother

One Last Chance ch.15  
  
**** The Love of Mother ****  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
Thoughts  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. In the last chapter Ranma reveals how he switched the marriage contracts, engaging Nabiki to Kuno rather than Akane being engaged to the Kendoist. Nabiki is now stuck in an engagement to Kuno. Ryoga and his companion have finally made it to Tokyo, unfortunately they ran into Nodoka Saotome upon their arrival and Ryoga portrayed Ranma as a coward and unmanly. Ryoga and his companion after receiving directions from Kodachi arrived at Furinkan. Ryoga charged forwards and attacked Ranma while he and Akane were eating lunch. His companion stayed in the shadows watching the scene unfold. Ryoga ran rather than reveal his curse and subsequently got himself lost ... again. His companion stayed behind and watched Ranma. When he returned home, Ranma encountered his mother waiting there for him. Things might not be looking so good for our pigtailed martial arts hero right now.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House, Evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"M-mo-mother," Ranma managed to get the word past the lump in his throat.  
  
"Hello son, please sit, I believe it is time for us to talk," Nodoka's voice was colder than Ranma or Akane could remember and she had a dangerous glint in her eyes.  
  
The two moved and sat opposite the Saotome matriarch, Akane felt a chill go up her spine and would have sworn Nodoka was using a version of the soul of ice.  
  
"Ranma, it is time for us to discuss a certain pledge you made before you and your father left all those years ago."  
  
The feelings of dread and panic began winning over in Ranma as his mother spoke, but he just sat there tight lipped while the colour drained from Akane's face.  
  
"I see you're father has informed you of this contract," Nodoka emotionlessly stated, silently making note of the fear her son was trying not to show, but frowning in disapproval despite herself.  
  
"Well I'm sorry, but it has come to my attention through old friends of yours that you are not the manly son I had hoped for. Fetch your tanto Ranma it is time for you to fulfill your end of the promise."  
  
Ranma was shaking in fear while Akane was quivering in anger over what was happening in front of them, Ranma's mother wanted him to die.  
  
Unable to refuse his mother, Ranma wordlessly left the room and retrieved his ceremonial dagger from his pack where he had kept it all these years, but had never understood until a short time ago why he and his father, both practitioners of a fighting style which eschewed weapons in favor of completely unarmed combat, carried around the daggers.  
  
By the time Ranma had returned to the room, Nodoka had already prepared for the seppuku ceremony.  
  
"I will give you until sunset to compose your funeral haiku, then you shall undergo the promise you made all those years ago."  
  
Ranma mechanically penned his haiku before kneeling on the tatami mat. Akane sat there watching in horror the scene unfolding, she knew Ranma could never refuse his mother, but this was ludicrous, he wasn't even going to make a case in his defense, and his mother wasn't explaining why he should be killed, she was just going to chop off his head without even getting to know him.  
  
"Wait Mrs. Saotome, you can't do this yet, what about Genma, shouldn't he be here," Akane managed to call out, trying to buy the man she loved a little time, there was no way Genma would stay human or stay in the Tendo compound while his wife was here.  
  
"I will get to my husband in time, he must also fail for this breach of contract, but that does not excuse my son from his failure either," Nodoka's voice practically generated icicles, "ready Ranma?"  
  
"Yes mother," Ranma replied, his voice betraying none of the betrayal and sorrow he felt was empty and emotionless.  
  
Akane could do nothing but watch as Ranma lifted the tanto to his stomach and drove the point in, pulling to the left and then twisting up and pulling to make a bloody L in his stomach and completing the traditional cuts. To his credit Ranma's face betrayed no pain beyond the emotional suffering he was feeling, Ranma had never been good at hiding that type of pain.  
  
A few moments later Nodoka's Katana came down, severing Ranma's head from his body. His pigtail fluttered lightly to the floor where it had been cut as the Katana sliced through it on the blade's trip towards Ranma's neck. A few moments later Ranma's lifeless body slumped to the floor.  
  
As the body fell Ranma's head rolled forwards, coming to a stop in front of Akane she screamed when the lifeless eyes of her once fiancée came to look into hers. His face wearing a said look that betrayed the beauty he held in life.  
  
Akane jerked out of the nightmare/daydream she was in, coming back into the here and now. She was aware of Ranma's hand tightly gripping her own hand. She gave his hand a little squeeze of reassurance and was relieved to feel Ranma's vice grip slacken tightly.  
  
Unfortunately the here and now could very quickly turn into the horrible vision she just saw. Akane silently swore to herself that she would do anything to keep such a scene from playing itself out.  
  
Nodoka quietly watched the interaction going on between her son and what must have been her son's fiancée. She wasn't willing to rule on the girl in her son's favor or not just yet. While at first glance she seemed like a nice girl, she was seemingly lacking in feminine traits, obviously an athlete, and her hair was awfully short. Now that Kasumi girl who had greeted her was a very nice and proper woman, maybe she should be the one her son was engaged to. Assuming he was the manly son she had hoped for.  
  
"Mrs. Saotome," Akane began to say but was interrupted.  
  
"Please call me Auntie dear."  
  
"Thank you Auntie," Akane continued, "What is this contract you're talking about?"  
  
Nodoka looked surprised for a moment that she didn't know, but relented deciding that her son and husband must not have mentioned such a private affair to those not yet part of the family.  
  
"Well, before I would allow my husband to take my son from me, he made me a promise that if he didn't raise Ranma to be a man amongst men then both he and Ranma would commit seppuku, didn't my husband inform you of this?"  
  
Ranma was able to find his voice long enough to utter a single sentence.  
  
"Actually mother, I wasn't aware of the promise until about a week ago, and even then I only found out about it by accident."  
  
Ranma's mother looked shocked for a few moments before her calm demeanor was back in place.  
  
"Regardless, Ranma still made his promise even if you forgot about it the promise still binds you," Nodoka's tone was as firm as steel with determination.  
  
"I don't think it matters if the promise still binds Ranma, after all he is a man amongst men, so he won't have to commit seppuku anyway," Akane's tone was both firm and hopeful, barely betraying any worry or fear she might be feeling.  
  
Ranma felt his heart leap as Akane came to his defense, maybe he wouldn't have to feel the bite of cold steel today after all.  
  
"I have heard otherwise to this point very much differs with that information."  
  
Nodoka recalled that nice young manly boy she had met earlier that had assisted her on getting to the dojo.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flashback, Streets of Nerima, Earlier that day ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Hmmm, the Tendo Dojo should be around here somewhere. The sooner I find it, the sooner I can see the results of my son and my husband's training, I do hope those boys I met earlier were mistaken."  
  
Nodoka walked along the streets of Nerima, after talking with those two boys, she had decided the best thing to do would be to go visit the Tendos and find out if he husband and son really were there.  
  
She had wondered why Genma had not come home if the training trip was now over and it was time to settle down and fulfill the engagement between the Saotome and Tendo clans. If he had decided to live with the Tendos for a while, then why had he not told her or sent word. As a matter of fact, he hadn't even sent a single letter since he had told her he was taking her son on a training trip to China for a while. The last letter had arrived saying he had made it to China and had found a famous training ground to take Ranma too.  
  
Then a couple of months ago the letters had stopped and Nodoka had feared her son and husband dead until she ran into those young men yesterday.  
  
The only reason Nodoka could imagine that Genma hadn't informed her that they were back in Tokyo was that he didn't believe she'd believe him manly enough and make Genma and Ranma commit honourable seppuku for failing to fulfill their agreement. This knowledge only added credence to what she had learnt the day before.  
  
Turning a corner she was so lost in thought she bumped into someone walking the other way. Nodoka stumbled and would have fallen to the ground if the other hadn't caught her in his arms.  
  
"Thank you very much sir, my apologies for bumping into you," Nodoka said, looking up at the handsome man who had caught her.  
  
*** Warning, from this point on events shall be seen from a certain Point of View ***  
  
Tatewaki Kuno had been deep in thought, not something uncommon for an intellectual such as himself, when some miserable wretch rudely bumped into his most righteous self.  
  
The young Samurai Kuno spared a passing glance, a very noble and charitable glance, down at the poor fool who had impudently dared to violate his presence with such impunity.  
  
He saw a beautiful, if older, woman who was obviously going to fall after rebounding from his iron hard chest. By her poise and grace she was obviously samurai, much like himself, and the object she carried in that silk case must be a katana the noblest of weapons a design of which his own bokken was based off of.  
  
To prevent the woman from falling, Kuno reached out and surrounded her body in his arms, capturing the lady in strong arms belonging to his noble self and supporting her with but a small part of his infinite skill.  
  
The woman looked up into his most handsome face, obviously reveling in being held by such a noble man such as himself.  
  
"Thank you very much sir, my apologies for bumping into you," the noblewoman thanked him, obviously such a noble lady such as her was made of sterner stuff than the other girls he had met, none but the fair Akane Tendo and her mercenary sister Nabiki Tendo, Kuno shuddered as he realized that Nabiki was his fiancée, had been able to be in his magnanimous presence without being too overawed to speak with him.  
  
*** Now we're going to take off the Kuno coloured glasses and proceed as a normal person ***  
  
"Not at all, it was my most perfect pleasure to assist one such as yourself noble swordswoman," Kuno replied.  
  
It took Nodoka a moment to realize that this young man was speaking about the Saotome honour blade, which she had strapped onto her back. It only took another moment to realize that this young boy was a very traditional person just like herself. The hakama and bokken, which he was wearing, did a fairly good job off implying this, as it also implied that he was proficient in kendo. She imagined he must be from at least a minor noble family with the way he held himself and dressed.  
  
Stepping out of the boy's arms she took a step back and bowed in thanks.  
  
"Thank you good sir for your assistance," Nodoka thanked the young man.  
  
"Not at all, it was most fortuitous of myself happening upon this location as I was able to save one such as yourself from a most unpleasant descent to the unyielding earth," Kuno boisterously spouted, "yet nothing less could be expected from one such as myself."  
  
"Once again my thanks, but I must be on my way."  
  
"Truly, where do you head most noble swordswoman, surely I Tatewaki Kuno might escort you to your location as to ensure your safety upon these dangerous streets, who knows what ruffians might attempt to accost you."  
  
Nodoka stared at the young boy for a moment, he didn't seem to be meaning her any harm although he had a very strange method of diction. Of course if the young man did intend her harm the Kendoist would be in for a very large surprise. She wasn't as helpless as she looked.  
  
"I wouldn't want to impose upon your time, there must be many other items requiring your attention."  
  
"Not at all, a Kuno knows full well where his duties lie and mine lay with escorting you to whatever destination awaits."  
  
It was obvious that this Kuno was going to be very insistent on this subject; Nodoka wouldn't have been surprised if he happened to be a very obsessive person.  
  
"Thank you, I would be honoured to have you as an escort," she finally relented and allowed his presence.  
  
"And where might it be that a noble lady such as yourself is going," Kuno inquired as he escorted the Saotome matriarch down the streets.  
  
"I am on my way to the Tendo Dojo to see someone," Nodoka replied.  
  
"Ahh then surely you go to see my fierce tigress," Kuno declared.  
  
"Excuse me," Nodoka asked, somewhat startled. This young man had better be talking about one of Tendo's daughters otherwise her son would have some explaining to do while he consecrated his tanto.  
  
"The fair Akane Tendo, a beauteous creature trapped into a marriage she doesn't want by that foul sorcerer Saotome, an enemy to womankind. Cheating and fleeing from battle, surely he is no man," Kuno loudly declared, but not too loudly, one never knew where Nabiki's ears were at any given moment in time, saying something like what he usually did could get Kuno in trouble.  
  
"You wouldn't happen to mean Ranma Saotome would you," Nodoka asked.  
  
"Surely that is the sorcerer's name, he has escaped the vengeance of heaven for far too long. Using his dark magic he has ensnared Akane Tendo to satiate his dark lusts and has forced her mercenary sister and I together. For his folly he shall pay his dues," Kuno continued to rant.  
  
Nodoka was now smiling slightly; maybe her son was manlier than she thought. If Akane Tendo and him were engaged and Ranma had already managed to seduce her, then maybe her son was manly enough after all. Even if she wasn't his fiancée that would prove he was manly enough to get himself a good mistress. Nodoka practically glowed with joy.  
  
Kuno's comments about Ranma fleeing from battle went right by Nodoka as she focused on Ranma's womanizing, not a bad thing from her point of view.  
  
"Would you mind showing me the way to the Tendo Dojo in that case," Nodoka asked, halting Kuno in his ramblings on the evils of sorcerers and their dark magic.  
  
"Of course noble lady, we are almost upon the residence of the Tendo family and the vile Saotome," Kuno said taking off at a brisk stride.  
  
Nodoka fell into step a pace behind him and thought upon this recent revelation of hers. It appeared her son was a coward when it came to fighting, very unmanly, but at the same time he was already seducing women with success, very manly. She would have to meet her son before she could make any decision on the subject. It wouldn't do to end the entire Saotome line without having all the information first.  
  
After all, even the condemned had the right to have their fair say.  
  
Kuno halted abruptly and turned to face the Nodoka.  
  
"Well here we are good madam, please for your own safety reconsider, it would be ill done and much to my shame should the sorcerer cast a spell upon you as he has so many other women who encounter him. Beware his dark magic and deceitful heart," Kuno seriously warned Nodoka.  
  
"Oh I don't think I have anything to fear, after all I am his mother," Nodoka replied as she entered the gates, leaving a gaping Kuno behind her.  
  
All Kuno could do was stare at the gates where the woman who had first appeared so noble entered. How could such a demon spawn as Ranma Saotome be born from such a perfect being. Kuno spun round and headed for his mansion to contemplate this matter.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flash forwards, Tendo house, Evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"I don't know who told you that Ranma isn't manly, but whoever they are they must be people who dislike Ranma, you can't listen to what other people say before you even meet him," Akane crossly told Nodoka. Only Ranma's presence had kept the volatile girl from saying anything else to her fiancée's mother.  
  
"Maybe, but the young men were all quite manly," Nodoka argued.  
  
"Then isn't one measure of a man the quality of his enemies," Akane questioned.  
  
The older woman nodded giving in to her future daughter-in-law's point.  
  
Unfortunately for the couple Nodoka wasn't assured yet of her son's manliness and she moved in for the kill.  
  
"Another judge of a person's manliness is how well he satisfies his fiancée. So tell me Akane-chan, how is my son in bed, does he perform adequately."  
  
Akane blushed scarlet and Ranma spat out the tea he was drinking when they heard such crude words coming from such a refined lady's mouth. Neither martial artist could think of words to reply to such a crass question.  
  
Once again fortune wasn't with the two as Nodoka took their silence the wrong way.  
  
"I take it my son hasn't been performing his duties adequately," Nodoka stated, her eyes narrowing dangerously, "I would have expected Genma to have trained you better." Nodoka sounded disappointed.  
  
"How was he meant to train me better," Ranma incredulously asked, managing to find his voice through the astonishment.  
  
"Well I'm sure there were plenty of girls on your trip who could have helped you, if not that there are plenty of houses and places for that type of thing," Nodoka stated this as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
Ranma could only stare in disbelief before shuddering at a memory of the time his father had tried to take him to one such type of teahouse with Happosai and Soun. Thanks to the ever-present joy and help of a certain water-based curse Ranma had arrived as a girl.  
  
After one individual had gotten a little too friendly, AKA some drunk had groped him, Ranma had lost his fraying temper. In the resulting fight the place was torn apart.  
  
The only good thing that had come from the whole situation was Ranma later meeting the gender-challenged ninja Konatsu who came for revenge, but began working for Ranma's best friend Ukyo after he was helped out in escaping the grasp of his jealous female relatives.  
  
"Pop never took me to any place like that," Ranma firmly stated, knowing this would be seen as unmanly by his mother, but not wanting to lie to her.  
  
A small frown creased Nodoka's face at her son's words; maybe he wasn't as manly in that area as she had hoped, this revelation wasn't helping her impression of him, especially coupled with what all the others had said about him.  
  
"Oh Ranma-kun, how is the meeting with your mother going," asked Kasumi from the doorway as she entered the room with a duster and began cleaning.  
  
"It's going quite well," Nodoka replied for her son, albeit with a somewhat forced smile.  
  
"Well my son, what have you been up to these last several years?"  
  
Glad to discuss something besides the looming promise of ritual suicide Ranma was more than happy to enter into this topic.  
  
"Well, pop took me away on the training trip and began teaching me martial arts," Ranma began to tell his mother all about the training trip he and his father went on. He left out certain details such as the multiple fiancées, stealing food, the Neko-ken training and the subsequent dump into a pit of cats wrapped in various fish products.  
  
During the slightly edited and abridged story Ranma was telling, Akane sat by his side giving his hand the occasional reassuring squeeze.  
  
Nodoka sat listening to the story her son told her. Some parts were good, some were bad, and the worst parts Ranma left out to spare his mother and Akane, who hadn't even heard some of the things his father had put him through, and if Ranma had his way neither of them would ever here of them. Ranma didn't particularly like his father, but neither did he want his father dead, which considering some of the things Genma had done would be more than likely.  
  
Unnervingly Nodoka showed no real signs of emotion as Ranma told his story; she just sat there impassively listening to what Ranma had to say. This disturbed Akane since some of the details in Ranma's story were truly horrifying and she herself was barely able to constrain the urge to go find a certain panda-man and make herself a very nice panda skin rug, although she did admit to herself that while she wouldn't have any trouble skinning the panda, she would need Kasumi to actually make the rug.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Osaka, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Shampoo looked around satisfied, while that first perverted Japanese nature spirit had been able to sneak up on her, she was sure that it would be the last one that would get a free peep at her.  
  
The Amazon champion carefully made her way back to her campsite, avoiding the traps and wards she had put up. She knew she should probably be going after that girl Ranma now, but she wanted one more day to train before she went after the fleeing girl, besides if she was right then the girl would be staying in Japan and not fleeing to another country like she had done from China. A day more wouldn't matter after such a long chase.  
  
Shampoo hoped over the trip wire, which would set off the huge swinging logs she had set up. While twisting to avoid the garrotte which would choke anyone who tried to jump the trap. Both log had a spirit ward on it to smash any perverted spirits, which happened to stumble upon it. Teach them to spy on a defenceless girl.  
  
Shampoo made her way back to where her sleeping roll was, dodging various traps, trips, pits, spikes, and other defences on her way.  
  
Spending a day making non-lethal, lethal, and just plain sadistic traps is enough to tire even an Amazon champion out.  
  
Arriving back at her bedroll the Amazon hunter put some more fuel on her fire and began to stretch out any kinks and sore spots before she went to sleep, after all it would do her no good to wake up and barely be able to move.  
  
She had just lain down and closed her eyes when a sound from just outside the clearing attracted her attention. Shampoo was up, wide-awake, and in a fighting stance with her bonbori in hand.  
  
"Who there," Shampoo asked in her broken Japanese as her eyes glided over the edge of her campsite at the limit of the light her campfire. She couldn't see anything, but she knew someone or something was out there and that he, she, or it was somewhere out there watching her.  
  
Shampoo spun around to see a figure move out of the woods behind her.  
  
"Aiya, What you doing here?"  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House, Late Evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"And so after being chased across China by the Chinese Amazon I beat we came here and I met Akane," Ranma finished.  
  
His throat had dried out as he was talking and his voice was cracking slightly as the pigtailed martial artist finished telling his mother the abridged and censored version of his training trip. Ranma was glad he hadn't told his fiancée the whole story either. She had almost crushed his hand at certain parts of the story when his father did this or that, such as when Ukyo had been declared as his fiancée by his father for the Okonomiyaki cart and then run off without Ukyo.  
  
Akane had stepped out of the room when Ranma had reached the part where Shampoo had begun chasing Ranma across China. She'd heard it many times before and wanted to check and see where and more importantly what, especially in Nabiki's case, the rest of the household was.  
  
On her way out of the living room she noticed that the Shogi board was gone. Her father and Mr. Saotome had probably gone bar hopping again so the dumb panda wouldn't have to face his wife and the possibility of having to commit suicide.  
  
Nabiki wasn't in her room and Akane couldn't imagine where she would usually go at this time of night except to check on one of her schemes that she had going on. Akane groaned, if Nabiki stayed out too late she wouldn't get much sleep and she'd be grumpy . . . grumpier than she usually was. Akane shrugged it off though, Nabiki was Nabiki, if she didn't have a scheme running it would only be a matter of time before the moon turns blood red and falls from the sky while the seas boil and the four horsemen roam the earth.  
  
Akane peeked into the kitchen to see if Kasumi was there. Much to her surprise where once Kasumi stood unchallenged over her domain, excluding Akane's occasional incursions, which more often than not lead to disaster, was an empty room.  
  
Curious Akane entered to see if there was any sign of Kasumi. A note on the counter informed her that Kasumi had gone to visit Dr. Tofu and drop off a book.  
  
Akane just stared at the note, "Wasn't she meant to ask me to go drop the book off to Dr. Tofu's office tomorrow?"  
  
She continued reading; since Mrs. Saotome was here Kasumi had thought it best to leave the three of them alone to talk without interference. Dinner was being kept warm in the oven and that Nabiki had been kind enough to go with Kasumi to visit Dr. Tofu after she had asked.  
  
Akane glanced out the window; well at least the moon was still there and a nice white colour.  
  
Akane went over to the tap and got some cold water before filling another with hot water from the ever-present kettle.  
  
Akane turned to leave the kitchen and took a deep breath, inhaling and exhaling slowly. Now was the hardest part of this entire meeting, thankfully nothing had happened during the meeting to accidentally change Ranma into his female form. Now that Ranma had explained about the training trip, and still had his head attached to his shoulders, they were going to reveal Ranma's curse.  
  
Hopefully his mother would accept him as he was, curse and all. If she didn't, well Akane didn't even want to consider that possibility, but they'd work through that obstacle when they came to it.  
  
She came back into the room as Ranma was just telling about his arrival to the Tendo Dojo.  
  
"So Akane and I met and hit it off, I knew that I would have to choose one of the Tendo daughters to marry and I decided that Akane and I were right for each other and proposed to her in the dojo," Ranma explained to his mother as Akane walked into the room.  
  
Nodoka's expression had changed when Ranma told her this from a neutral and impassive visage to a look that said, 'my son is so manly.'  
  
Akane saw this and decided to play it up.  
  
"That's right, when I met Ranma just a few days ago, he was so manly, handsome, and charming I knew he was the right man for me and I'd love to be married to him and take over the dojo with him," Akane said from the doorway.  
  
Nodoka was practically beaming with pride over her manly son being able to get a girl to fall in love with him on their first meeting.  
  
Of course neither Ranma nor Akane were going to mention that technically it wasn't their first meeting, but neither felt it would be a good idea to relate that event to Ranma's mother, especially not with the threat of Katana hanging over his neck.  
  
Akane took a step forwards to go sit next to her fiancée, but her foot got caught on the doorjamb.  
  
The glass of water she held in her hand flew out heading towards Ranma. Akane gasped as she saw the glass heading towards an unaware Ranma.  
  
Akane threw the water from the other glass praying that it would hit Ranma fast enough so that Ranma's mother wouldn't notice the change.  
  
Ranma heard Akane gasp and turned to see the water heading straight for him. Like a deer caught in headlights, Ranma was frozen in place and unable to move.  
  
The glass landed on Ranma's head, emptying its contents onto the pigtailed martial artist. Ranma sat in shock as he felt the warm water running over his head. He breathed a sigh of relief as he realized Akane had let go of the wrong glass.  
  
Akane's second gasp snapped Ranma back to reality. His eyes were able to focus on the second stream of water heading straight for him.  
  
Why me, I mean honestly what did I ever do to deserve this? Ranma asked himself as the water splashed onto him.  
  
She shivered as her body shifted around due to her curse once again trying to ruin the individual known as Ranma Saotome's life.  
  
Nodoka looked back from her shamefaced son . . . daughter . . . person who claimed to be her offspring to Akane's horrified expression in shock. What had just happened in front of her?  
  
She looked back as Ranma bowed her head low to the table and softly cursed the gods and fate. Akane could only stare at her fiancée with a shocked and horrified expression as her knees gave out and she slumped to the floor leaning against the doorframe.  
  
Nodoka's expression hardened as she saw the disgust in her son/daughter's fiancée. Surely Akane could not want the thing her son had become as was obvious by the girl's expression and how she was keeping her distance.  
  
Steeling herself for the task at hand, Nodoka decided it was time to judge whether or not Ranma was truly a man amongst men.  
  
"Ranma will you please go and fetch the necessary implements. It is time for you to be judged," Tempered steel was nothing compared to Nodoka's voice.  
  
Ranma unable to think on his own mechanically stood up and went to get the required objects for what could very well be the end of his re-life.  
  
Akane was still slumped against the doorframe in shock over having revealed Ranma's curse inadvertently to his mother without being able to properly warn her.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"That bitch, she is not going to kill the godslayer, I'm going to stop her heart, I'm going to give her a stroke, I'm going to set the furies after her, I'm going to steal one of Zeus' lightning bolts and stuff it down her throat, I'm going to . . ." the armoured figure began to scream at the scene unfolding while stalking back and forth.  
  
"Calm down, you know as well as I do that to do such would be to incur Torm's wrath, and that would not be something we would want," the cloaked figure calmly intoned, "besides, there are so many other gods, demons, and beings watching this very scene unfold that there would be no chance of any action being taken go unnoticed. Do you honestly think we are the only entities who wish to do something?"  
  
The armoured figure stopped pacing and sat down on its obsidian throne.  
  
"I don't have to like it do I?"  
  
No response came as they watched the glass slip from Akane's hand and hit Ranma.  
  
Both let out a sigh of relief when Ranma didn't change.  
  
"I'm sure my heart stopped beating when I saw the water heading for him," the armoured figure muttered.  
  
"What heart," asked the cloaked figure impudently?  
  
"It's a figure of speech," the armoured figure replied, resting its head in its hands.  
  
"Umm, don't look now," the cloaked figure said.  
  
"What is it," asked the armoured figure, looking up at the viewing portal.  
  
The sight of a dripping wet and very female Ranma was the sight that greeted the armoured figure's eyes.  
  
"Oh Hades," both figures exclaimed.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 15, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
And quite frankly I'm happy to be done with this. Of the entire story this chapter was by far the most difficult to write and I'm still not completely pleased with it. It has taken a long time to write and has progressed in spurts over a great length of time. The fact that I have also been preparing for midterms and having a pretty hefty work load in class didn't help the speed at which I got this chapter done either. I barely found time to work on the story when I did and that was mostly on weekends. In addition to that I was suffering severe writer's block over just how I was going to address this issue. Thankfully my class workload had lessened slightly and I just went on spring break. This means that I had quite a bit of free time to work on the story and I tried to make up for lost ground over the break. Hopefully my next chapter will not be too far behind this one, but I will no longer be able to throw out a chapter every week.  
  
I was very tempted to just leave the story at the part where Ranma's mother cuts off his head, or post the first part of this chapter on April Fools and the rest of the chapter on the second, but I decided I didn't need the outcry of rage, which doing that would elicit so the story continues ever onwards, its inexorable advance slowed, but never truly stopped.  
  
I've received quite a few messages from concerned readers over the progress of the story and how long it has been since my last update. Well all those who might have thought I had given up on the story have no fear I persevere and continue my story even in the face of catastrophic troubles and will not stop until I finish, die, or get distracted.oh look a pretty butterfly. I mean I'll keep working on it as long as I still have people interested in it.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	16. The Duty of Mother

One Last Chance ch.16  
  
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**** The Duty of Mother ****  
  
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Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
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AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
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` ` ` ` Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. Nabiki is now stuck in an engagement to Kuno. When he returned home, Ranma encountered his mother waiting there for him. Things might be looking even worse for our pigtailed martial arts hero right now. Ranma discussed his training trip with his mother, telling her about what he had been doing over the past decade. Meanwhile at her campsite Shampoo encountered someone. Akane and Ranma were ready to tell his mother about his curse when fate intervened and he got hit with a glass of water. Thankfully it was warm water and he didn't change. Unfortunately the water Akane tossed immediately afterwards was cold and revealed Ranma's curse. ` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo House, Evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` ` "Ranma will you please go and fetch the necessary implements. It is time for you to be judged," Tempered steel was nothing compared to Nodoka's voice.  
  
Ranma unable to think on his own mechanically stood up and went to get the required objects for what could very well be the end of his re-life.  
  
Akane was still slumped against the doorframe in shock over having revealed Ranma's curse inadvertently to his mother without being able to properly warn her.  
  
As Ranma walked by Akane, the young Tendo shot her fiancée a pleading look, asking him not to go through with this. Upon seeing Ranma's face Akane knew that he'd go through with it. Nothing was more important to Ranma than his honour and mother. If his mother asked him to kill himself for the sake of honour Ranma would more than likely do it.  
  
Ranma disappeared round the corner after lightly brushing his hand over her shoulder reassuringly. Akane shuddered to think that might be the last time she'd get to feel his touch.  
  
Nodoka saw Akane shuddering at the thing, which claimed to be her son, and realized this was the right choice. No woman should be forced to wed such an abomination and it was clear that this girl was being forced into such a marriage against her will.  
  
"Don't worry Akane-chan, you needn't worry," Nodoka soothingly told the girl.  
  
Akane turned from where she had watched Ranma trudge away to face the Saotome matriarch. Nodoka's words struck Akane and a glimmer of hope surfaced.  
  
"Really Auntie, then, you mean . . ." Akane left the words hanging in the air, not quite able to say the words.  
  
"Yes, once that cursed individual who calls himself my son commits seppuku to redeem his honour you will be released from this unwanted marriage."  
  
"No, no, no," Akane exclaimed, "that's not what I meant, this marriage isn't unwanted, and I want to marry Ranma."  
  
Nodoka smiled at the young girl who was pleading for her fiancée's life, it was obvious that even though the girl wanted to be free from the engagement she was upholding her honour by acting the way a proper fiancée should.  
  
"I'm sorry dear, but to keep his honour Ranma must perform seppuku like he promised."  
  
The temper, which Akane had restrained while Ranma was in the room began to come back full force.  
  
"Ranma didn't make that promise, for the love of god, look at the promise, Ranma's handprints are all over it. He wasn't making a promise; it looks like he was finger-painting. How can you try and hold Ranma to such a stupid promise made by his father while he was an infant," Akane had moved across the room and was glaring at Nodoka over the table.  
  
Nodoka's only response was to lean back slightly when Akane first raised her voice and stalked across the room.  
  
"A promise must be kept even if Ranma can't remember the promise," Nodoka began to state calmly, but was cut off by Akane.  
  
"Ranma didn't even know he was swearing to this, there's no way he could have understood what you expected of him."  
  
Nodoka narrowed her eyes at the girl across from her. Akane was now seeming less and less like what Nodoka had originally thought, and more like a person standing in the way of honour and duty.  
  
"You have no right to interfere in this. This is a promise within the Saotome clan and you have no part in this."  
  
"As Ranma's fiancée I have every right, I'm not going to let you kill your son because of something that he can't control after having only talked to him for a couple of hours."  
  
Nodoka's hand unconsciously strayed to the Saotome honour blade, an action that did not escape Akane's notice.  
  
Before she could even blink Nodoka found a very sharp tanto held against her throat by Akane.  
  
"Akane, what are you doing," Nodoka asked, shocked by both the girl's actions and her speed.  
  
"I love Ranma, and I will not let anyone take him away from me again. That includes you mother-in-law," Akane said the last words with an impressive amount of venom.  
  
"You'd kill me for my son," Nodoka asked in a guarded tone.  
  
"I'd kill you in a heartbeat if it meant saving Ranma," Akane's grave but determined tone proved just how serious she was as she pulled the blade closer to Nodoka's throat. ` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ranma's room, Tendo house ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` ` Ranma slid open the door to the room he and his father shared at the Tendo home.  
  
As he stepped into the room he had lived for the past 2 weeks/ 2 years, the pigtailed martial artist couldn't help but wonder just how much longer he would be living in this room.  
  
There were three likely changes that would happen in time. The first and most hopeful was that he would eventually move into Akane's room when she became his wife. Second he'd be in this room for another two years stuck with his father. Tertiary and the least enjoyable would be that before the night was out his body would be in a pine box with his head seemingly attached by a silk scarf.  
  
Ranma really hoped that the last option was not the case. He enjoyed his head where it was.  
  
A backpack thrown at him interrupted Ranma from his introspection. Ranma reached out and caught the pack just before it would have hit him in the face.  
  
"Come on boy, we're getting out of here now," Genma growled as he hefted his own pack.  
  
Ranma too stunned to speak looked around the room he and his father shared. It was barren, even more so than usual. What little the two Saotomes possessed had been removed from the room and placed into the two well-worn packs.  
  
"What do you think you're doing pop," Ranma growled right back at his father while dropping his pack back onto the floor.  
  
"Simple my boy, I'm watching out for your best interests. Now that your mother knows about your shameful secret she will carry out the pact which we pledged to so long ago." Genma inwardly smirked, there was no way the boy would be willing to get his head chopped off. True they might not be able to come back to the Tendo Dojo, but Genma had gotten good enough at selling off his son that he was sure to be able to set up some other deal where he could live the good life off of the boy.  
  
"I know you don't want to leave here, but surely you can see it is for the best," Genma tried to cajole Ranma into agreeing with him.  
  
"What about Akane, what about your promise to unite the schools, what about the promise to mom you made before she let you take me off on a ten year training trip so that you could teach me martial arts so that I could marry Akane and unite the schools and be a man for mom?"  
  
"I never really expected to have to go through with the whole commit seppuku promise boy and I never intended too. We would have been fine if you hadn't fallen into that cursed pool," the gaping flaw in Genma's logic was enough to stun Ranma for a few moments, more than enough time for Genma to launch himself into an attack in the hopes of subduing his son/meal ticket and making a break for it.  
  
The elder Saotome's plan met with complete and utter failure as the younger Saotome casually blocked Genma's assault and planted a fist into the face of his father.  
  
"Bad move old man," Ranma replied and then proceeded to demonstrate just why Genma's plan had been such a bad idea in an incredibly painful and gratuitous beat down that left one Saotome feeling oddly refreshed and at peace while the other was left whimpering on the floor in a mangled heap. Three guesses as to which Saotome is the one, which is on the floor whimpering, and if any one of those guesses is Ranma then you have less common sense than a Kuno.  
  
Ranma pulling a piece of rope out of his pack began to hog-tie the mangled Genma. Since Genma's new form could pass for modern art Ranma had no problem creating a very secure set of knots that would keep his cowardly father in place until he got back from talking with his mother.  
  
For good measure Ranma decided he might as well gag Genma while he was at it, four pairs of rolled up socks later and a new loop of the rope and Ranma was satisfied with his handiwork.  
  
"Listen up pops and listen good. I am nothing like you and I never want to be anything like you, I am going down there to face my judgment and you're going to do the same."  
  
Having said his piece Ranma retrieved an extra tanto and robes for his father.  
  
"Time to face the music old man, if you believe in the gods I'd start praying."  
  
Ranma found his own words particularly funny, especially since he knew that gods existed, as did magic, dragons, demons, ghosts, curses, and a number of other things that would get him committed to a mental hospital anywhere, but Nerima. and possibly Juban or California.  
  
Ranma grabbed his bundled up father by the scruff of his neck and began dragging him from the room and heading for the stairs.  
  
` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Living room, Tendo house ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
Looking into her eyes, Nodoka could see the determination in them and knew without a shadow of a doubt that this young girl would willingly slice her throats with hardly a second thought if it meant protecting her fiancée.  
  
The gaze of grim determination on Akane's face changed to one of shock and surprise as Nodoka swept her into a hug. This was very surprising considering the fact that both of them had been kneeling, with a table between them, and Akane had been holding a razor sharp tanto to the older woman's neck.  
  
"Very well Akane," Nodoka said, placing the young girl back on the ground and giving her back the tanto, "You have convinced me not to be so hasty in my decisions. I will postpone my judgment of Ranma until a later time. I will show myself out, please tell my so-Ranma that I will see him another time and we will talk more then."  
  
Akane was shocked into immobility by the older woman's change of heart.  
  
Nodoka seeing Akane to surprised to reply turned and began to leave.  
  
Nodoka stopped as a tanto blade appeared in front of her, quivering as it stuck into the wall right before her eyes.  
  
"I don't think you understand Mrs. Saotome. This entire contract is a travesty and I will not let you carry it out under any circumstances. Ranma is more of a man than any other person I know. Try and make Ranma commit seppuku and I will make you regret it."  
  
Nodoka turned to look Akane straight in the eyes.  
  
"No, you understand little girl, this is a clan matter of family honour. I have given my SON a reprieve from his judgment, but it is his duty to eventually face my judgment as his mother. Not you, not Genma, not even the Kami will prevent me from doing my duty. Know this little girl, your threats mean nothing to me. I am giving Ranma a reprieve out of respect for your feelings and tenacity."  
  
Nodoka whirled away from Akane, breaking eye contact she stormed past the tanto still embedded in the wall.  
  
Twirling around Nodoka grabbed the tanto and threw it back at Akane where it embedded itself into the ground at the young Tendo's feet.  
  
"Do you think your threatening me with death means anything. If I did judge my son unmanly then I would follow him and my husband into the afterlife as soon as my duty as their second was fulfilled. I am sorry you were brought into a family matter such as this, but make no mistake if you get in the way of my duty to my clan's honour again I will not be as forgiving."  
  
Seeing no response forthcoming from Akane Nodoka once again turned to leave.  
  
"Don't worry about me, I will show myself out," done saying her piece and sure that the girl was too stunned to try anything while her back was turned Nodoka left the Tendo residence.  
  
Akane heard the Saotome matriarch leave, but was unable to do anything but stare at the Tanto quivering in the floor inches in front of her big toe.  
  
She just stood there watching the hilt of the tanto rocking back and forth, watching the hilt of the weapon as if it was the most important object in existence.  
  
"Akane?"  
  
And that's how Ranma found her when he came down the stairs carrying the tools he'd need for the ceremony and dragging a fat whimpering old man behind him.  
  
Akane looked over to see her fiancée coming down the stairs. All the pent up tension and adrenalin she had been suppressing burst forwards. The youngest Tendo collapsed as the tension of the moment combined with the exhaustion from the day finally caught up with the girl.  
  
Ranma was at her side and caught her before she was halfway done with her fall. Of course this left Genma, whom Ranma had been dragging without a support allowing him to take a not so pleasant tumble down the stairs to end up in a heap at the bottom of the stairs.  
  
"Pops your going to pay for this mess," Ranma growled.  
  
Genma could only whimper in reply.  
  
"We're home, oh my, what happened here?"  
  
` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Midnight, Ranma's room ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
Ranma lay in bed for a while thinking about what had happened during the day. After his mother's visit Akane had chosen the moment before Kasumi arrived home to collapse. Ranma and Kasumi had carried her upstairs and put the young girl to bed.  
  
Akane had gripped tightly to Ranma while he carried her up the stairs. Kasumi had shooed a blushing Ranma out of the room while Kasumi changed Akane into one of her pairs of pajamas. She had allowed Ranma to say goodnight to his fiancée's sleeping form before hustling him out of the room.  
  
Rather than letting him go to his room and go to sleep the eldest Tendo had asked Ranma to stay up and talk with her. Since there was nobody on the face of the earth who could refuse Kasumi when she really wanted something, Ranma of course accepted her gracious invitation.  
  
In the kitchen, Ranma had explained to Kasumi what had happened earlier over some tea, or at least as much as he knew. ` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flashback ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
After putting Akane to bed Kasumi had taken Ranma into the kitchen, taking the very sharp tanto from his hand and putting it away in a cupboard where it was out of sight and hopefully out of mind.  
  
"Ranma-kun, what happened, did the meeting with your mother go well," Kasumi asked as she went around the kitchen while a pot of tea boiled. Although it was obvious by her tone and the worried look in her eyes that she realized things hadn't gone as well as she had hoped. "It didn't go well did it?"  
  
Ranma thankfully took the cup of tea Kasumi placed in front of him. Taking a sip he let the tea made by Kasumi's skilful touch ease some of his stress. Ranma quickly drained the cup only to have it refilled by a waiting Kasumi.  
  
"Thank you Kasumi, Akane would know better than I would, but my curse was revealed to her before I had prepared her for it"  
  
Ranma stopped talking for a moment to allow Kasumi to throw in an, "Oh My," before continuing.  
  
"She instructed me to go fetch my tanto and prepare myself," Ranma didn't show a hint of emotion as he told Kasumi the events of the evening, "So I went upstairs to get it. Pop tried to stop me and make me run away with him. I didn't want to run and leave Akane and my honour so I convinced him to stay."  
  
Kasumi nodded as another piece of the puzzle fell into place.  
  
"Oh, Mr. Saotome, would you care for some tea," Kasumi asked.  
  
The person, currently panda, Kasumi asked the question to was unable to respond as he was bound too tightly to reply with a sign, so he just whimpered an affirmative.  
  
Unfortunately for Genma, Kasumi didn't speak panda and so she mistakenly thought Genma was politely refusing her offer.  
  
"Then when I came down the stairs, I saw Akane standing there with the tanto stuck in the ground and mom was gone."  
  
Kasumi just nodded; surprised that Ranma seemed to take this so well. A shiver going down her back made her make a mental note to check the heating system, it shouldn't be this cold in the kitchen.  
  
"Well if you excuse me Kasumi, I've had a long day and I'm going to bed, school tomorrow and all." Finished with the conversation Ranma left the room heading for his futon and a night of sleep.  
  
Ranma was almost to the top of the stairs when he turned around and stalked back into the kitchen.  
  
"Good night Kasumi, I hope you sleep well."  
  
Ranma then hoisted his panda father over his shoulder and carried Genma back up to their shared room.  
  
` ` ` `  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flash Forwards ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
It had been quite a day starting with Ryoga and his vendetta and ending with his mother and the seppuku pact which he was honour bound to fill.  
  
With all these thoughts on his mind Ranma fell asleep, curiously enough there was a nagging thought in the pig-tailed martial-artist's mind that he was forgetting something, but already tired in the extreme, Ranma dismissed it and drifted off to sleep, welcoming the dark nothingness of dreams.  
  
Unknown to Ranma a dark figure slipped into his room and made its way over to Ranma's bed.  
  
"Ranma for what you've done to me you will pay," The shadowy figure declared while standing above the sleeping body of the previously stated sleeping martial artist.  
  
Ryoga punched towards Ranma, trying to extract his revenge. Ranma rolled over and avoided his punch. Ryoga tried again only to have his pigtailed nemesis roll over, avoiding yet another strike for vengeance.  
  
After a few moments of thought the just punisher decided that it would be best to wake his archenemy up so that he could extract his revenge on an awake target that would hopefully be easier to hit.  
  
Ryoga glanced around the room and saw nothing out of the ordinary from a regular room besides the sparseness of the furnishings, the two large backpacks against one wall, a panda that appeared to be hog-tied, a small desk with a lamp on it, and a. wait a minute, a panda?  
  
Ryoga turned his head back and saw a real bruised panda hogtied, gagged, and stuffed into a corner. Ryoga's temper began to rise again.  
  
"So Ranma not only do you run from our fight and make my life hell, but you also abuse harmless animals." Ryoga made his loud declaration and turned to hear whatever weak excuses his for would give.  
  
Ranma's only response was a snore before rolling over and snuggling into his sheets. Ryoga sweat dropped at the sight of his opponent completely ignoring him.  
  
Ryoga took a step forwards when a chill ran down his spine, ran up it again, and then slid back down just for an extra shiver. He looked around, but couldn't see anything in the room. Ryoga allowed his eyes to drift once more across the room.  
  
To the naked eye there was nothing different in the room, but Ryoga had felt the change. Of course he really wanted to punish Ranma now so that he could get on with his life so Ryoga ignored that little feeling that most people would call caution and decided to get on with Ranma's punishment.  
  
"Ranma, get up," Ryoga said. He prodded the pig-tailed martial artist with his foot a few times, but didn't receive any response from the sleeping body.  
  
"RANMA WAKE UP SO YOU CAN TAKE YOUR PUNISHMENT LIKE A MAN."  
  
Ryoga tried to kick Ranma with enough force to wake his sleeping nemesis up, but his target rolled out of the way at just the right moment.  
  
Ryoga bent down and leaned close to Ranma's ear, sucking in a lungful of air.  
  
"RRRRAAAAANNNNNNMMMMMMAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
The pigtailed martial artist sat straight up like a shot.  
  
"Huh, wha? who?" Ranma managed to ask looking around bleary eyed. He had been having such a nice dream, Akane had been there and he had rolled over so he could hold her in his arms, listening to her soft rhythmic breathing, and feeling the soft beating of her heart.  
  
Then she was calling his name, and now he was sitting up with no Akane, but oh look, there's Ryoga. He's probably here to avenge Akane's honour for some slight or another.  
  
"I'm not in the mood for this tonight Ryoga, I've had a long day, and I just want to sleep. This is your only warning."  
  
Ryoga made a few mistakes at this time, had he avoided any of these mistakes than he just might have been in a better situation, but unfortunately for the bandanna-clad teenager, he made the mistakes. Ryoga missed the obvious clues visible on the other individual's features and tone, he blatantly ignored the way his danger sense was now screaming at him, and he overlooked the sheer anger and irritation the Ranma was radiating in an almost visible aura.  
  
"That's funny Ranma, I wasn't in the mood to have my life ruined by you and what you've done to me, so now we're almost even." Ryoga dropped into a fighting stance ready to deal punishment to his tormentor.  
  
"Now stand up and get ready to take your beating like a man."  
  
The fanged boy attacked Ranma with a punch that could crush rock.  
  
And the ceiling of Ranma's room got a new skylight as Ryoga's body went flying into the air.  
  
"I told you I wasn't in the mood," stated an irritated pigtailed martial artist as he stood impassively watching Ryoga disappear over the horizon.  
  
A cold wet droplet hit Ranma's nose, causing him to look up through his new skylight just in time to catch the rainstorm, which entered the Nerima area a few moments ago.  
  
"Well that's just fantastic now isn't it!"  
  
The now female Ranma sighed in defeat and prepared to try and get some sleep, resigned to ignore the falling rain, after all, camping out with his father for ten years of his life had led him to get used to such things.  
  
A whimper from the man made panda redirected Ranma's attention to the useless lump of fur, an evil grin spread across his face as he glanced from the hole to the very plump panda.  
  
` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Osaka, Japan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
Shampoo finished the packing of her campsite. It looked like the pursuit of Ranma would be continuing now rather than later.  
  
She had come to this conclusion after the rather important messenger had advised her to continue along her path as soon as possible.  
  
Shampoo sighed as she put the last of her equipment into her backpack. She enjoyed camping out like this without any worries, well almost any worries. Unfortunately she wouldn't be able to camp out when she reached the village called Tokyo. From what the young Amazon warrior had heard Nerima was a sub-village within a very large village.  
  
If she were to survive and live within the village she would have to find herself somewhere to stay. Thankfully Amazon herb and medicine knowledge were second to none. She wouldn't have too much trouble getting herself to be hired by some stupid male healer. Her beauty and body were more than enough to influence any simple minded male into hiring her in the hopes of getting her into bed.  
  
Shampoo's thoughts were interrupted by a falling body a few meters away from her. She spun around to face the intruder only to be confronted by the same perverted spirit that was spying on her earlier. Pulling out her bonbori she swore that she would make it pay. Castration might be in order as a matter of fact.  
  
Ryoga shook the cobwebs from his head and looked around. Ranma sure had a good kicking leg, maybe he wasn't quite as weak as the fanged martial artist had expected. His heart skipped a beat as he saw the same purple haired girl he'd seen bathing naked in a stream before.  
  
At the memory Ryoga's nose almost shot out a gusher of blood. It was obvious that this girl was none too happy to see him. Rather than try and explain it really wasn't his fault, and before the martial artist could explain the girl charged him wielding a very funny looking pair of clubs.  
  
Ryoga did the only honorable thing and ran away as fast as his legs could carry him. He ran straight for Shampoo's traps, unaware of their existence with the purple haired fury behind him.  
  
` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
  
"Well that is one bullet dodged." The armoured figure collapsed into its chair allowing the tension to bleed off as it idly stroked a midnight black dagger back and forth on the stonework of the chair.  
  
"Not quite the skilful touch we could have hoped for," replied the shadowy figure, which was lurking by the viewing screen watching the scenes unfold around Ranma, the focus of many gods. "He still has the seppuku contract that the two humans calling themselves his mother and father created hanging over his neck."  
  
"His mother is not a fool, she will see that he is a man amongst men easily enough, anyone who watches the godslayer for a while can see just how masculine he is."  
  
The cloaked figured shot a questioning look at its ally, well as questioning a look as is possible when you can't see any more of a face than shadows. "Oh really and since when has the chaos surrounding this individual ever allowed anything simple that is obviously meant to go one way to go that way without some weird or strange coincidence sending it awry."  
  
"No one likes a pessimist."  
  
"You are a pessimist."  
  
"And just how many entities do you know that actually like me," the armoured figure replied with a smirk. " I do think it's well past time I introduced myself to the godslayer."  
  
"Are you sure that's wise," inquired the cloaked figure.  
  
"We'll see now won't we?"  
  
The armoured figure laughed while the cloaked figure hung its head.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 16, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
This chapter flowed pretty well; I've always seen Nodoka as the type of person who may jump to conclusions, as anybody might under certain circumstances, but as level headed as she is and not the most normal person I might add (who else carries around a katana in the hopes of meeting your son and husband to cut their heads off), anything could happen.  
  
As for Shampoo bathing in the stream a few chapters back, this story is starting over from the beginning, so the only cursed members are Genma, Ranma, Ryoga, and anyone who was cursed before hand. Mousse and Shampoo are both un-cursed and didn't get cursed until later in the series.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	17. The End of Life

One Last Chance ch.17  
  
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**** The End of Life****  
  
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Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
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AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
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` ` ` ` Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. Nabiki is now stuck in an engagement to Kuno. Ranma's curse was revealed to his mother. Akane refused to allow Nodoka to take Ranma's life threatening Nodoka with a tanto. Due to a series of events that occurred Nodoka decided to refrain from judging Ranma so soon, she left with a warning to Akane not to come between Nodoka and her duty or else. Ryoga after interrupting Ranma's sleep got punted through the ceiling and encountered Shampoo. ` ` ` ` `  
  
"There is but one thing guaranteed to a person. Be a person the highest king or the lowest serf none can escape that which he is promised. To some he is a constant companion to others he is their worst enemy. Some pay homage to him while others live in constant fear. He is the greatest relief for those who suffer, the old, and the sick. He is death and he will have his due." ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima, Midnight ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` `  
A cold silence settled on the streets of Nerima as a cloaked figure walked down the well-lit street. The lights seemed to fade a little and grow dark as the figure walked by. Dogs barked as the cloaked presence approached, but were wise enough to hide and cower whimpering in the shadows when the shadowy person got too close. Wives gripped their husbands more tightly, men woke up in a cold sweat, and children woke up screaming. A chill descended on the streets of Nerima for death stalked the streets that night.  
  
Hiro Nagaske had been working late and chose to walk home to let the exercise bleed off some of the stress he felt from a hard day at the office. Stopping for a moment he dug into his pocket searching for a cigarette. With a frown he realized there wasn't one in the pocket. A quick search of his other pockets revealed a lone cigarette was all that was left of the last pack he had bought.  
  
Hiro thought to himself with a slight touch of sarcasm.  
  
Placing the cigarette into his mouth he brought out a lighter and lit it. Taking a deep drag of the cigarette he held it for a moment before releasing it in a slow steady stream. Briefly he reflected on what a nice night it was even if a slight bit chilly.  
  
"Pardon me, but would you happen to know the way to the Tendo Dojo," a voice asked with the heaviness a funeral bell.  
  
"Sorry, I'm not familiar with that place," Hiro lied, he knew where the Tendo Dojo was, most people who had lived in Nerima for a long time knew the respected Dojo and the equally respected man who lived there, but the directions were rather complex and he didn't feel like reciting them. Besides he was sure the Tendos wouldn't want a visitor at this time of night.  
  
Hiro looked up to see a person standing not to far away from him, but he couldn't quite make out any of the features because of the darkness the figure was standing in. As a matter of fact the darkness seemed to surround the figure.  
  
"Very well, thank you for your time," the same voice, heavy as a lead weight intoned.  
  
The figure turned and began walking away, Hiro watched it go, unwilling to turn his head as if his life depended on not taking his eyes off this figure.  
  
"You do know that smoking WILL kill you!" Hiro heard the dark voice as if the figure were still a few feet away from him.  
  
Hiro had heard similar statements before from many different people, including his wife, but for some reason this stranger's words were less a warning and more of a promise.  
  
"Oh yeah and how long will it take them to kill me, thirty, forty years?" Hiro responded with more bluster than he was feeling at the moment.  
  
"Three days," the figure responded with a voice as optimistic as a funeral dirge.  
  
The cigarette fell to the ground forgotten as Hiro Nagaske turned around and continued home at a faster pace than before.  
  
The other figure continued into the darkness away from the man and in the general direction of the Tendo Dojo.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, a few minutes later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ranma slept fitfully in his female form, not having bothered to get the hot water to reverse the curse to change back into his male form. Ranma rolled over in his futon and stared at the ceiling of the room he had gotten to know so well over the now nonexistent time, which he spent there. Unable to sleep properly he reminisced about how things were and how they should have been. The ceiling hadn't changed too much in the time he had stayed there from the way it was now. Although many of the boards had been replaced and repaired over his stay at the dojo it was still basically the same roof it had always been.  
  
Of course the fat snoring panda that had been stuffed in the hole was a somewhat different than the boards which usually repaired the ceiling, but was nonetheless adequate for stemming most of the water which had tried to come in from the short shower. Luckily for the panda man, the rain had stopped after only a little while, sparing him from a completely wet night.  
  
Genma's fur had mostly dried out leaving a rather unpleasant musk, which he managed to ignore having lived with it for about a month and never having been one to allow minor irritations such as a bad smell, a little pain, common morality, or the law to interrupt his business.  
  
Ranma couldn't help but feel slightly uneasy as he lay staring at the ceiling, that little voice in his head which usually warned him of coming dangers was telling him something was coming. After all the trouble he had experienced Ranma was more than willing to trust his instincts when it came to danger.  
  
Unconsciously he began fingering the special engagement ring he now wore on his hand, taking comfort from the warm reassuring feeling. After a while Ranma slipped into peaceful dreams, unaware of the shadowy figure watching him.  
  
The shadowy figure slipped into the room through the now open window, causing Ranma to pull his blankets around himself a little tighter.  
  
Silently the figure glides over to Ranma and extending a thin hand strokes the slumbering martial artist's cheek gently.  
  
"Sleep well young one," a voice whispered with the quiet of a graveyard. Strangely enough the touch, which was akin to that of a warm deep grave, didn't disturb the slumbering martial artist's rest.  
  
"Fair thee well little creature, I will be seeing you again shortly." And with less sound than a worm digging through the earth of a freshly dug grave all that was left in the room were a pair of cursed martial artists and their dreams.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Next morning, Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"So Ranma are you prepared for another day of fun and excitement at school?" queried Akane as they walked down a normal looking quiet Nerima street on the way to school.  
  
"I'm not quite sure you could qualify school as fun and exciting after all we've been through."  
  
"And now we get to go through all of those adventures again."  
  
Ranma's response was less than enthusiastic and far from polite.  
  
"What a mouth you have there, do you really kiss your fiancé with that mouth?"  
  
"As often as we can get away with," came the response from a slightly blushing Ranma, eliciting a blush from Akane.  
  
"RANMA PREPARE TO DIE," came a familiar voice from above the two.  
  
A moment later Ryoga with his umbrella leading came down between Ranma and Akane, forcing the two to leap apart, throwing up a cloud of dust from the impact crater he put in the ground  
  
"Ranma, for what you've done to me, I'll send you too hell," Ryoga growled standing up and menacingly pointing his umbrella at the target of his aggression.  
  
As the dust cleared he could clearly see the mailbox of which he was threatening showing not the least amount of fear. After all it was an old mailbox, which had been in Nerima for many years and learned a good deal of courage over its life.  
  
Ryoga blinked and looked around, growling in anger he yelled, "Curse you for running off again coward, Ranma I'll find you and get my revenge." Running off in pursuit of Ranma he dodged around the mailbox and ran straight through a wall.  
  
Behind the crater Ranma and Akane stood watching the retreating figure of the fanged martial artist as he broke through the Nerima scenery heading away from Furinkan and his goal.  
  
Never one to let things pass him by Ranma quickly responded to the situation.  
  
"Bye Ryoga, see you in a few days." Ranma called after his rival's retreating form, waving goodbye.  
  
"Well that was . . . brief," Akane deadpanned before realizing the time, "AARRGGH, we're going to be late." No sooner had Akane uttered her words then did she nearly dislocate Ranma's shoulder as she dragged him towards the school.  
  
Ranma thought to himself as he watched the scenery fly by.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Furinkan High School a few minutes later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
In the courtyard of Furinkan stood a lone figure standing stoically waiting for one man. The gentle breeze rustled his hair, as he stood alone, everything about him was almost the picture of a serious conflict coming. Behind him was Furinkan and before him were the gates from which his target would arrive. The dramatic picture was somewhat spoiled by the students surrounding him pointing and talking. He ignored them; knowing that the one he waited for would arrive soon and then he could settle his business and return home proud and with his honour restored. He was Ryu Kumon and his target was the martial artist known as Ranma Saotome.  
  
A slight movement from his left caught Ryu's eye. An individual was appeared to be trying to sneak into the school, ducking behind other students and for the most part trying to keep low.  
  
"You STOP!" Ryu commanded pointing at the figure. Instantly the other students parted from the intimidating stranger's sight to reveal a single student wearing a dear caught in the headlights look.  
  
"Eep!" Was all the sound Daisuke was able to let out as a sudden clear space in the otherwise crowded courtyard appeared around him. Even Hiroshi had gotten away from him and was standing at the edge of the crowd looking at him.  
  
Striding over to stand before Daisuke, Ryu wasn't too much larger than Daisuke height wise, but appeared to tower over the Furinkan student. The fact that Daisuke had recognized one of the two assailants from the night before and was even now cowering didn't help his situation.  
  
"Y.Y.Yes," Daisuke managed to stammer out, staring fearfully into the evil eyes, those dreadful evil eyes.  
  
"Where is Ranma Saotome, shouldn't he be here by now?"  
  
"I.I...I...I...It's only hi.hi.his third day.maybe he.he.he.he got lost," Daisuke managed to stammer out.  
  
"Who is this noble individual who seeks the villa.person Ranma Saotome?"  
  
"Who wants to know," Ryu asked turning away from Daisuke, allowing the student to skitter off and change his underwear before school starts.  
  
"Ahh I understand is it not the custom to give one's own name first. Verilly well, I am Tatewaki Kuno, also known as."  
  
"Nice to meet you, I'm Ryu Kumon, now why did you ask," Ryu cut off Kuno before he could go into a long speech.  
  
Schooling himself, barely, Kuno continued on trying to ignore the slight.  
  
"Dost thou seek to deliver retribution to him, or art thee a dastardly ally of his."  
  
Ryu looked the person calling himself Kuno over, ignoring the speech pattern, boken, and kendo garb he didn't seem that different from a normal person. He was obviously in excellent shape and had some skill from the way he moved, but that didn't tell how skilled he was just by looking at the Kendoist.  
  
"I'm here for my own personal reasons, it is between Saotome and I, no one else." Ryu stated in a tone that brooked no arguments.  
  
"Yet surely a warrior such as yourself is here to wrong some slight against you or your family caused by Saotome," Kuno argued anyway.  
  
"I don't think I want to hear anything else you have to say."  
  
Ryu turned away from the fuming Kuno and looked around for the little guy which helped him and Ryoga the other night, but wisely enough Daisuke was long gone and already inside the school.  
  
Ryu turned to watch the front gates again, taking up his steadfast vigilance watching the students entering through the gates.  
  
Most of the students realizing the show, for now, was over began heading inside before the bell rang. The supply of students streaming in began to lessen the closer it got to the actual bell until it was only one or two students still arriving at a time.  
  
* Ding *  
  
Two figures were left standing in the yard.  
  
* Dong *  
  
One was a strong imposing martial artist.  
  
* Ding *  
  
One was a fuming Kendoist moving up behind the martial artist, boken ready to strike.  
  
* Dong *  
  
Both stood still, straining they're ears to hear a voice that sounded slightly familiar.  
  
* Ding *  
  
"Come on Baka we're going to be late!"  
  
* Dong *  
  
Two pairs of eyes stared hard at the entrance, focusing on an approaching dust cloud.  
  
* Ding *  
  
The dust cloud flies into the school before heading into one of the classrooms.  
  
* Dong *  
  
"Phew, we made it," Akane's voices drifts out of an open classroom window on the third floor.  
  
Out in the yard Ryu Kumon and Tatewaki Kuno lay a groan came from the two trampled bodies in the yard where Akane ran them down.  
  
Ryu thought to himself right before he lost consciousness.  
  
"I fight on," Kuno breathed out before he passed out.  
  
"How the mighty have fallen," Nabiki's cold voice addresses the two unconscious boys.  
  
"You'll owe me for this," the Ice Queen informed the fallen form of Ryu Kumon as she grabbed one of his arms.  
  
"I'll put this on your tab," the middle Tendo informed her fiancée as she grabbed him by his leg.  
  
A quick tug sent Ryu onto one of her shoulders. Not bothering to do the same to Kuno she began walking into school at a leisurely pace. It wasn't like she was worried with being late; she had a permanent excused tardiness for dragging Kuno to the nurse's after her sister was through with him. As a result she usually took her time enjoying the relative peace that was just for her and Kuno, and today Ryu, although Kuno was always unconscious or even more delusional than he usually was so she was the only one that enjoyed the peace.  
  
The school doors swung shut after Nabiki passed through them with her human cargo, and another day at Furinkan High school began.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Just outside Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A beautiful and bouncy figure surveyed the village where her prey was hiding herself this time. It was big, very big; in this 'Tokyo' her prey had lots more places to hide here than in other places the two of them had traveled in their game of cat and mouse. Fortunately for the Amazon huntress knew the name of the area in which her target was hiding.  
  
Nerima  
  
"Ranma, you I kill."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
* ACHOOO *  
  
"Bless you!"  
  
"Thanks Akane, I guess someone's talking about me," Ranma chuckled at the old folktale.  
  
"Don't be silly Ranma, if you sneezed every time someone talked about you you'd never stop sneezing, especially not with the amount people talk about you."  
  
"Yeah you're probably right, hey want to go get some ice cream?" Ranma asked, pointing at a nearby ice cream store.  
  
"Isn't that the same ice cream shop where we first encountered Shampoo?"  
  
"Nah we encountered her after our match with the Golden pair in the locker room," replied Ranma with a confused expression.  
  
"Are you sure about that?"  
  
"Not really, I can't seem to remember."  
  
"Oh well, it doesn't matter, let's just get some ice cream." Akane ended the discussion, grabbing Ranma's hand and dragging him towards the shop.  
  
Inside the shop they took a seat and waited until a waitress came by and took their order.  
  
"I'll have a fruit parfait and some tea please," ordered Akane.  
  
"Umm, can I have the same thing and a glass of ice water please," ordered Ranma with a slight flush on his face.  
  
The waitress smiled and took their menus disappearing behind the counter to give their orders before moving on to another table.  
  
The teenage couple sat in companionable silence at the table for a little while before a stray thought crossed Akane's mind.  
  
"Why do you want the ice water Ranma?" Akane asked in a perfectly neutral tone of voice.  
  
"Well, guys don't eat that kind of stuff so I'm going to change to a girl."  
  
"I don't think so Baka," Akane's tone quickly became hostile, "I'm going to sit here with my male fiancée, guys eat 'that kind of stuff' too, and we're going to enjoy it like a normal couple."  
  
Any thoughts of arguing quickly fled from Ranma's mind when he looked into her eyes and saw the possibility of mallet-sama forming in his fiancée's hands.  
  
"Ok" Ranma said in a meek voice.  
  
"Good Baka," Akane said cheerfully her expression brightening and the smile reappearing on her face.  
  
"Whew." Ranma let out a sigh of relief.  
  
A large crashing sound made the colour drain from Ranma's face as the couple looked over at one of the walls.  
  
Where the waitress had tripped over a girl who had run in and grabbed the tray she was carrying, dumping everything on the tray onto the floor and creating the crashing sound.  
  
"Phew," Ranma sighed in relief as he saw that it wasn't Shampoo come to get him.  
  
"Trevor, Trevor you want to come home with little Azusa right?"  
  
Akane just groaned and put her face in her hands. She definitely remembered Azusa and her partner and the trouble they caused. Now the little kleptomaniac was here trying to take a tray she had named Trevor.  
  
Ranma groaned and hung his head. He was disappointed, but not for the same reason as Akane. Ranma was just watching all that beautiful and tasty ice cream going to waste on the floor.  
  
"Charlotte, Charlotte, I found you," the overly cute little girl bubbled, making her way to the next object which had caught her fancy.  
  
Akane felt a jerk on her arm and then something tugging on her ring finger.  
  
With venom in her eyes she looked over seeing Azusa tugging on her finger, not just her finger, but her ring, and not just her ring, but her engagement ring. Flames sprung into Akane's eyes as she stared visual death into the shorter girl.  
  
"Charlotte, Charlotte, Charlotte, let go of my Charlotte." Azusa asked teary eyed to the mean girl who wouldn't let go of the absolutely adorable item.  
  
"Let. Go. Of. My. Engagement. Ring. Or. Else." Ranma shied back as far as the booth's seats would let him, pushing into and almost through the seat's back to escape, even though that glare wasn't directed at him.  
  
Many of the people watching the scene felt a chill go down their spines at the sheer amount of venom the girl had been able to fit into her arctic voice. Unfortunately for her Azusa was watching what looked like a flame dancing inside the Sapphire and missed the very words Akane said.  
  
Grabbing the smaller girls arms Akane picked her up and threw her into a wall, leaving cracks around her indention. Unseen by all the red flame in the Emerald of Ranma's ring grew slightly brighter.  
  
"Please excuse Azusa, sometimes she items which are cute and wants to take them home with her." A tall man who had walked up behind Azusa before she went on her brief flight said.  
  
"Isn't that illegal," an individual sitting in another booth asked, but was ignored by the four main players of the scene.  
  
"Allow me to make it up to you, I am Mikado Sanzenin," Mikado said leaning over to give Akane a kiss on her lips. Even though she knew it was coming, Akane was shocked he actually would dare to try and kiss her even though she was wearing a ring.  
  
Mikado leaned down, his face getting closer to hers, Akane realized she had hesitated too long and for some reason wasn't going to be able to escape.  
  
Mikado's face came lower and suddenly went past her as he doubled over from Ranma's fist colliding with his stomach.  
  
"How dare you strike me when I was attempting to bestow my favor on this girl." Mikado berated Ranma looking down on the interloper who had disrupted his kissing technique no girl could refuse or escape even if they tried.  
  
"How dare you try to kiss my fiancée," Ranma shot back.  
  
"How dare you how dare my how dare you." Mikado quipped.  
  
"How dare you how dare my how dare you how daring your how dare you." Ranma returned.  
  
As Ranma and Mikado verbally sparred, the rest of the ice cream shop had adjusted themselves at their seats so they could have a good view of the impromptu floorshow. This was also one of the reasons why the owner hadn't stepped in yet and kicked them out as they were drawing him quite the paying crowd.  
  
The waitress was moving around again and taking orders from the assembled people who took a moment out of their lives to catch a bite to eat and relax.  
  
"...How daring my how dare which how dared your how dare daring my how dare daring...."  
  
Azusa began peeling herself out of the wall while trying to catch all the Francois flying round her head.  
  
Akane sighed in relief as Mikado's focus on her was diverted from her and to Ranma. Not having noticed the slightly brighter gleam in the sapphire of her ring at first when Ranma hit Mikado and growing slightly when he began arguing with the skater.  
  
She regained full control of herself at about the same time as all the Francois disappeared from around Azusa's head.  
  
"GIVE ME MY CHARLOTTE, I WANT MY CHARLOTTE," She yelled running towards Akane.  
  
"I challenge you," Ranma and Mikado stopped arguing to look at the two girls.  
  
"I challenge you too a match, if you loose you must return all the things you've stolen from people." Ranma was shocked to see that it was Akane who made the challenge.  
  
"Fine, but if you loose you give Charlotte back to Azusa."  
  
"Fine."  
  
"I challenge you to a match as well." Everyone turned to the latest challenger, people sitting at the edge of their seats, eating their ice cream, and watching the unfolding drama.  
  
"I challenge you Mikado Sanzenin to a match." Ranma's words echoed around the shop as people held their breath, hanging onto every word said, "For trying to kiss my fiancée."  
  
"We accept your offer, we will meet you at the Kolhotz skating ring in one week to have our match." Mikado stated as Azusa moved over to stand beside him while making faces at Akane.  
  
"Don't you two realize that those two are the Golden Pair of Kolhotz high school, martial arts figure skating champions?" A random individual in the crowd shouted out, spurring a low mumble of recognition from the crowd and causing the two subjects to strike a team pose.  
  
"No, the match will be in the Furinkan High's gymnasium in one week." Ranma declared.  
  
"What?" Azusa and Mikado asked at once.  
  
"We challenged you to a match not the other way around so we get to set the terms, and this is not going to be a martial arts figure skating match, it is going to be a real martial arts match." Akane stated as the two walked past the gawking pair and out the door leaving the golden pair to stare at their backs.  
  
"Hey, this is the bill for your friends." The owner called out throwing the piece of paper right into Mikado's hands amazingly well considering how lacking in aerodynamics paper is.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A house Juban ward, Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A woman sat alone in her room crying. Cursing at herself, crying at fate, cursing the contract, and crying at how cruel life could be.  
  
Yesterday she had met her son, a meeting of which she had been hoping and longing for. It had happened, the meeting she had wanted for more than a decade happened and she had ruined it. Ruined it because of words told to her by strangers.  
  
She had hoped for a strong manly son, but after the words of two strangers, well actually one the other didn't really talk much, she had come expecting a craven beast or a monster.  
  
Too late she realized he wasn't and then, the curse had happened. She hadn't known how to react to her manly son turning into a girl and had reacted badly, forcing her daugh.son to go fetch his tanto. If it hadn't been for her son's fiancée she would have in her foolishness made her only child commit seppuku.  
  
As it was she had threatened her son's fiancée, her own daughter-in-law, what had she been thinking? The two obviously cared for each other greatly and Akane had even risked her life to defend her fiancée. Nodoka could she was very skilled in the art and would be a fine martial artist, Nodoka couldn't even feel angry at the girl for being so disrespectful to her either. Nodoka looked at the day and realized exactly what had happened.  
  
A moment of anger and fear had probably ruined her relationship with her son, Nodoka could only pray that there was some way for her to make amends. Nodoka fingered her own tanto as she stared at the Saotome family blade, she would do anything to make amends, even if the price she had to pay was her very life.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere Else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA."  
  
"No, I just don't think insane laughter suits you, low evil laughter and chuckling is much more your style."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yes, low maniacal laughter works a lot better with the black armour than high maniacal laughter does. You sound more like Cyric or Kodachi when you laugh like that."  
  
The Armoured figure practically shuddered, "Don't compare me to either of those two."  
  
"Verily well, but you have to admit a laugh, while aesthetically intimidating and aurally appreciated, isn't as important in the grand scheme of things as an intimidating presence such as how you're always clad in that black armour and I'm always hidden by my cloak."  
  
"What about laughing for pleasure rather than intimidation."  
  
"I guess that's okay sometimes, but it also probably depends on whether you're considered to be good or evil."  
  
"Even you have to take some pleasure in the situation at the very least." The Armoured figure chuckled.  
  
"While I will admit seeing the looks on the faces of those two when they were challenged was hilarious."  
  
"Yes, it was deliciously surprising."  
  
"Well we didn't expect the godslayer and his mate to challenge the golden pair either, we expected them to wait for the challenge to come like last time," the cloaked figure remarked.  
  
"The godslayer beat them on the ice, I'm sure he can beat them off the ice with ease."  
  
"Indubitably," remarked the cloaked figure.  
  
"I can't wait to see this match happen even if the result of it are completely predictable," The Armoured figure uttered what might have been a grin on it's face, if immovable masks could smile.  
  
"What about the rings, I thought I saw the one on the Godslayer's hand glow brighter."  
  
"I didn't see it, are you sure?"  
  
"Definitely."  
  
The armoured figure's brow furrowed in thought, or at least as much as a mask could furrow.  
  
"Hold on, I've been recording it so we could go back and review." The armoured figure reached down, picking up what looked like a TV remote, if TV remotes were made out of bones and skin.  
  
"I'll just rewind it a few minutes and we'll see."  
  
The armoured figure pushes play and both lean forward to watch the screen.  
  
After a moment of static a picture appears.  
  
* Wherever monsters rampage I'm there to take them down, wherever treasure glistens I'm there to claim it. *  
  
A sweat drop grows on the back of the cloaked figure's hood.  
  
"You recorded Slayers?" The cloaked figure carefully asked.  
  
"Cursed Hephestus, I should have listened to his advice and just bought one from circuit city rather than have one made for me by Gond. I'll never figure out the settings on this thing." The Armoured figure groused in response.  
  
Both figures pause for a moment, glancing at each other before the cloaked figure breaks the silence.  
  
"So, Cable or Satellite?"  
  
"Cable, you wouldn't believe how bad the satellite reception is here."  
  
"I can imagine."  
  
Both figures laugh.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 17, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
I apologize for not updating in so long, but my summer was rather hectic and I completely lost all inspiration and had no idea what to write, but now that I'm back at school and my muse has returned to me I feel a second wind coming. So all I have to say is 'don't expect too much from me over the holidays'.  
  
I'd like to thank Mr. Guyman for his oh so eloquent review, it really helped me get back into the swing of things and start working on the chapter. No hard feelings I hope as I enjoy all reviews, even the ones threatening my life (although I would like those kept to a minimum if possible).  
  
So once again to all my loyal and not so loyal readers I apologize for making you wait four months for this chapter, I guarantee the next ones aren't going to take that long.  
  
Well Shampoo is nearing Nerima, the golden pair have stepped, and Nodoka is in a quandary. A lot can happen in one chapter, or nothing at all. MWAHAHAHAHA.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	18. The Game of Chance

One Last Chance ch.18  
  
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**** The game of chance ****  
  
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Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for entertainment purposes and I am making no money off it.  
  
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AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
'Thoughts'  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
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` ` ` ` Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. Nabiki is now stuck in an engagement to Kuno. Ranma's curse was revealed to his mother and she has allowed him to live, temporarily. After a day of school, which the two actually managed to make on time for a change they went to a nearby Ice cream shop where they encountered Azusa Shiratori and Mikado Sanzenin, The Golden Pair. After a brief difference of opinions as to the ownership of Akane's engagement ring were challenged to a match by Ranma and Akane. The one catch however is that it is a martial arts match and not a martial arts skating match. ` ` ` ` `  
  
"In everything a person does there is chance, the chance to succeed or the chance to fail, sometimes there are numerous results to any one chance, the slightest change in something will change chance, a pebble thrown in a lake can change fishing conditions for miles around. The beating of a butterfly's wings in Tokyo could change the wind slightly eventually causing a hurricane to hit the eastern seaboard of America, or change the course of a kicked ball in a football game causing it to swing outside the goal, or maybe swing inside the post just enough, or there could be no effect whatsoever, such is chance." ` ` ` ` ` ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo house, Evening ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ` ` ` ` "We're home." Ranma and Akane called as they entered the house, kicking off their shoes and looking forward to a nice relaxing evening before another madhouse day tomorrow.  
  
"Ranma, Akane, I'm glad your home, father and Mr. Saotome are waiting for you in the living room."  
  
Both teenage martial artists groaned as a sense of déjà vu filled them.  
  
"They don't have a priest waiting with them in there do they?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Oh my no, I didn't see one in there." Kasumi responded.  
  
"Then let's go face them." Akane muttered moving off towards the obvious trap their parents had set for the two of them.  
  
"The priest is waiting in the dojo." Kasumi said to Ranma and Akane's retreating backs, her soft words going unnoticed by the two.  
  
"Ok pops, what's this all about?" Ranma asked as he turned the corner and entered the living room.  
  
He and Akane found nothing but an empty room waiting them and their questions.  
  
After a moment of surprise the two went back-to-back glancing all around and up, looking for their sneaky parents and anything that the old men might try.  
  
After a few moments and nothing seeming out of place the two relaxed slightly.  
  
"Hmm, I wonder what that might be?" Akane asked, gesturing to a pair of small packages on the table.  
  
Carefully the two slid over to the table, carefully watching for any traps, which their respective parents might have set for the two of them.  
  
{ Dear Ranma and Akane,  
  
As a way of saying good luck and wishing you well with your courtship, here are a pair of gifts that will assist you in holy matrimony and the promise of uniting the schools.  
  
Love your devoted fathers. }  
  
"Hmm, maybe the last beating actually knocked some sense into them, but obviously not too much since their still harping on about marriage." Ranma stated holding up his package and beginning to unwrap it.  
  
"Well at least they're going to back off some, so at least that's one advantage." Akane replied, picking up her own package and examining it before beginning to unwrap the parcel.  
  
A puff of smoke from Ranma's package gave Akane enough warning that she was able to hold her breath and keep from inhaling too much of the airborne dust that escaped from the package.  
  
"Ran.ma." Akane gasps out before she falls to the ground slumping against her descending fiancée who was already unconscious. Darkness began to creep into her vision as she fought to stay conscious.  
  
"We got them Tendo, they accepted our marriage gifts, now to the dojo before they change their minds."  
  
"Sure thing Saotome."  
  
The voice of her father and the feeling of being gently lifted were the last things Akane heard and felt before the darkness completely claimed her.  
  
With their stubborn children asleep Genma and Soun made their way towards the dojo and the awaiting priest, pausing only briefly to drop the soon to be married couple of in a pair of wheel chairs before entering the dojo.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, A few minutes later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ranma's fortified constitution was already kicking in and getting rid of the sedatives in his system after only a little time. He began to return to consciousness and get a bearing for his surroundings.  
  
While he was unable to move or see his hearing was beginning to return and he focused on that sense to return the rest of him to normality.  
  
"Do you Ranma Saotome take Akane Tendo to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold for better or for worse, in sickness and in health until death do you part?"  
  
'Wait, why are they asking me that question, I was in the living room with Akane, not a church.' Ranma tried to ask a question, but no words would come from his unresponsive mouth.  
  
"Yes he does."  
  
'What, that's not my voice, that's pops voice, what the hell is he doing answering for me. Pops when I get up I'm going to put you down.'  
  
Trying to clench his teeth, but unable to force his muscles to respond, Ranma put every possible effort into regaining the use of his mouth. He could barely feel his jaw, but it wouldn't respond to his brain's frantic demands.  
  
"And do you Akane Tendo take Ranma Saotome to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold for better or worse, in sickness and in health until death do you part?"  
  
'Wait, is Akane actually going through with this?' Ranma paused his attempts to regain consciousness to hear her response.  
  
"Yes she does," replied a voice that wasn't Akane's.  
  
'Damn Mr. Tendo, if I get up they're both dead men.'  
  
Ranma's body began to glow faintly from his effort to speak. Akane was probably in a worse situation than he was. All Ranma knew was that he had to stop his wedding to Akane so that he and Akane could get married later.  
  
"If anyone objects to the union of these two please speak now or forever hold your peace."  
  
"I object," a new voice rung out in the bare silence which followed the priest's proclamation.  
  
"For what reason and on what grounds?" The surprised and slightly nervous priest asked the newcomer who had kicked down the doors to the dojo. The doors, which had been chained and reinforced by metal to the dojo, were now laying flat on the floor from where the newcomer had entered.  
  
"On the grounds that I'm here to kill Ranma Saotome and I don't want to make that girl a widow."  
  
'Wow, I never thought I'd be thankful for Ryoga's obsession to kill me.' Ranma idly thought to himself while still forcing his body to respond.  
  
"You would murder a helpless boy in a coma?" Asked the priest.  
  
'Well that explains how they convinced the priest to do this ceremony.' A small part of Ranma's mind idly commented while the rest of him was intent on moving.  
  
The red glow Ranma was giving off caught the attention of the priest who had been focused on the fanged devil, which had burst through the door.  
  
"They're both possessed," the priest mumbled while drawing himself back against the far wall of the dojo trying to put as much between the fanged boy and the glowing comatose boy as possible.  
  
"Listen here, we're trying to get our children married peacefully, why don't you just leave?" Soun asked this strange boy who had intruded into his home and interrupted his little girl's wedding, oh the trials of a loving father and what he had to go through for his dear daughter.his daughter who looked so much like his dear departed wife.  
  
Just the thought of his departed beloved almost sent Soun into tears. 'No Tendo, you're not going to cry, you're so close to uniting the schools and seeing your daughter happily married.' Soun withheld his tears for the betterment of his family.  
  
Ranma began to work his jaw up and down, he could almost talk, but he just couldn't get his vocal chords to work.  
  
"Tadaima," a very feminine and familiar voice wafted in through the open door frame of the dojo.  
  
'Oh great and I thought things couldn't get any worse' Ranma thought to himself.  
  
Soun and Ryoga glanced over to see Genma turn even whiter than his gi, curious expressions on their faces  
  
The priest didn't really hear the new voice through his prayers, although he did offer a few thanks when the glow around the pigtailed boy winked out. Renewing them as the girl now began to glow.  
  
'Oh no, she isn't going to take him away, not now, not while I can't defend him.' Akane had also been trying to get herself to move or say something since before Ranma had even woken up, although she wasn't aware of his return to consciousness.  
  
"Oh hello Mrs. Saotome, Mr. Saotome and Ranma are in the dojo with father, Akane, and a guest."  
  
All in the dojo could hear the approaching footsteps, except the priest. To Ranma and Genma it sounded like the approach of the grim reaper.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nerima, a few blocks away ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A man cloaked in black sneezed, a surprising gesture for a being, which had no lungs, throat, or nose. He paused a moment to think on it before shrugging it off and continuing on his way.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Back at the Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Ranma, Mr. Saotome, you have a guest." Kasumi's voice was right outside the dojo.  
  
Genma's brain was screaming at him to move, to hide, to go panda, or at least to do something, anything as long as it got him away from here. Unfortunately the warring suggestions and panic within him froze the older Saotome male into inaction.  
  
"Konbanwan," Nodoka greeted as she entered the dojo. She paused and then did a double take.  
  
On the floor in the corner of a dojo was a priest who was praying fervently to his god. Close by the holy man was her son and his fiancée, both appeared to be unconscious and very nicely dressed, although Akane was glowing with a slight red aura.  
  
In the middle of the room stood Genma and his friend Soun, but what really got Nodoka's attention was the young man standing just beyond the door, glancing at her over his shoulder.  
  
HIM, he was the one who told her those lies about her son. He was the one who got her riled up and angry, tainting her view of her own son before she had even met Ranma.  
  
The boy who even now turned his head away from her as if she didn't matter.  
  
Ryoga shrugged the woman off, she was Ranma's mother, but he suspected after their discussion the other day that she shared his view of Ranma and wouldn't stop him.  
  
"Out of my way old men, I owe Ranma and I intend to pay him back in full."  
  
* Shink *  
  
The sound of a blade being drawn slowly from a sheath makes a very distinctive sound that even those who have never heard it can easily guess as to what the sound was.  
  
At the sound Genma's blood froze and he had to keep himself breathing through force of will alone.  
  
Ranma, although he couldn't see her knew his mother had just drawn her sword and braced himself for whatever would come next.  
  
Soun was caught between shock and the urge to cry, he wasn't sure why he wanted to cry, but felt it might be a good idea so he stood there in silence.  
  
Akane increased her struggling, she had to stop Ranma's mother from forcing Ranma to commit Seppuku, which had to be the reason she was here. 'After all why else would she be here except to take Ranma away from me, just like everyone else.'  
  
Ryoga smirked to himself, if he was right the woman would hold the two older men still while he finished Ranma, then she would be free of such a stain on her family's honour.  
  
The smirk fell from his face when he felt the touch of the cold steel against the front of his neck.  
  
"Saotome-san, what?" Ryoga was interrupted by Nodoka.  
  
"Listen to me you honourless little pig," Nodoka spat out the words, Ranma internally smiled at Nodoka's use of the pig knowing what its effect would be on Ryoga, "because of what you told me I came here and almost took my son's life. I only just got to see my son after him being taken from me more than a decade ago. Leave here now and I will forget my anger for now. Stay and it will mean a blood feud between our families."  
  
While Ranma couldn't feel anything besides his jaw, he could swear the temperature in the room had just dropped at Nodoka's words.  
  
Ryoga was about to argue with the woman, after all he was right, wasn't he, but Nodoka pulled the katana back, barely nicking the skin of Ryoga's jugular with it's razor sharp blade.  
  
"Fine I'll go," Ryoga muttered darkly.  
  
Nodoka removed the katana from his neck, but didn't sheath it.  
  
Ryoga backed out of the dojo, casting a glance back in at Ranma before he left the dojo heading for the front gate.  
  
By the time he reached the front gate Ryoga was deep in thought. 'Why, why do so many people jump to Ranma's aid, can't they see that he's a bad person and the cause of my problems, I'm sure he's causing them some problems as well.'  
  
Ryoga continued his train of thought as he walked down the street away from the dojo. 'He is the cause of my problems, isn't he? Isn't he?'  
  
"WELL ISN'T HE?" Ryoga didn't even sound completely convinced himself as he yelled the question.  
  
So caught up in thinking Ryoga didn't noticed he'd wandered into the middle of a crowd.  
  
"Huh?" Ryoga asked looking around.  
  
People were pushing past him in quite a hurry.  
  
"Where am I now?" Ryoga groaned, looking around till he could see a sign.  
  
{Pamplona}  
  
"Hmm, I wonder where Pamplona is?" Ryoga asked no one in particular.  
  
'Hmm, why is everyone running, and what are they running?' Ryoga wondered trying to see past the people. He could see that almost all of them were Hispanic, which meant he was either in America or Europe.  
  
Ryoga tried catching the arm of one of the people, but they were running to fast and jostling him out of the way almost as if they didn't see him or didn't care.  
  
Suddenly part of the crowd in front of him split and the largest bulls Ryoga had seen in his life were heading straight for him.  
  
"Is this really Ranma's fault?" Ryoga asked himself rather calmly as if he had reached a sudden epiphany.  
  
Then the first bull hit him.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Back in Nerima, Tendo Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Dear husband," Nodoka's voice just dripped with sugary sweetness.  
  
"Yes wife," replied a man who knew that no one, except maybe his ungrateful son, who would try and make a panda talk.  
  
"Why are my son and his fiancée strapped to those wheelchairs, and what is that priest doing here?" If anything the sweetness of her voice increased to dangerous levels.  
  
"They are getting married like good children and fulfilling their father's pledges to unite the schools." Soun threw in, completely missing the rising tension in the room, which most normal people would notice.  
  
"So you're marrying your daughter and my son?"  
  
Genma and Soun nodded dumbly.  
  
"Together?"  
  
The dubious duo nodded.  
  
"Where are the witnesses?"  
  
Soun pointed at the ceiling.  
  
Everyone who could move turned their eyes to the ceiling to see Daisuke and Hiroshi hanging suspended by a rope.  
  
"We just came to say hi and they jumped us." Daisuke wailed seeing that their eyes were upon him. This really wasn't his week.  
  
"Shhhh, this is getting interesting." Hiroshi admonished his friend; this was better than the movies.  
  
Sweatdrops grew on the back of the group on the floor, including Ranma and Akane who recognized the voices.  
  
"Oh, where are Akane's sisters?"  
  
"They went out shopping for food." Soun responded weakly to Nodoka's question.  
  
"And finally," everyone felt the temperature in the room drop with Nodoka's words, "you didn't even tell me about my son's wedding, you wanted me to miss the wedding of my only son?"  
  
Any protests Genma might have been able to think of stuck in his throat as he realized he had just made a fatal mistake with his and Soun's plan.  
  
Genma backed up slowly from the raging woman in front of him, joining the priest huddled against the back of the dojo.  
  
Soun not quite aware of the danger he was in, although when Nodoka began glowing in anger he did get the vague sense of something wrong.  
  
"Well you're here now Saotome-san so we can continue with the wedding to join our two clans."  
  
Ranma hearing Soun's words became worried, he didn't know whether or not his mother would support Soun and his father or not.  
  
The powder was rapidly fading from his body and he had slight control over his body again. Ranma tried to turn his head so he could actually see what was going on. Unfortunately this just resulted in his head lolling forwards at an angle.  
  
Nodoka noticed her sons head slip forwards, it brought her attention away from the Tendo patriarch and towards the fact her son was tied to a wheelchair.  
  
Striding past Soun, Nodoka walks to her son, walking around the wheelchair to face him. Gently she lifts his face to look him in the eye. To her surprise and ire, she saw his eyes were cloudy and not clearly focused on her.  
  
Ranma tried to move say something, but all he succeeded was moving his jaw up and down. Unfortunately seeing her son unable to speak merely fueled Nodoka's anger.  
  
"Husband dearest," Nodoka's voice dripped with sarcasm, "would you mind explaining to me why our son is drugged."  
  
Genma froze under the gaze of his wife, feeling much like a field mouse does when coming face to face with a king Cobra.  
  
"Well dear, he was a little reluctant to go through with the ceremony and so Tendo and I decided to give him something to calm his nerves." Genma lied easily even though he couldn't take his eyes of the bare katana.  
  
"And his fiancée?" Nodoka queried, raising an eyebrow and gesturing to Akane.  
  
"Well she also had a case of pre-wedding jitters and we thought whatworkedonRanmawouldalsoworkonAkanesoshewouldbereadyforherweddingandhappyl ikeanygirlwouldwantafterall."  
  
"You're talking quite fast Mr. Tendo." Nodoka confronted Soun, ending the tirade coming out of his mouth.  
  
"..." Soun was speechless, opening and closing his mouth and doing quite a good impression of a fish.  
  
"Release my son and his fiancée now or else."  
  
Genma's mind was racing, scheming, trying to figure out how he could get his ungrateful boy married without his own disobedient wife stopping them. Unfortunately Genma knew Nodoka well enough that she would not bend on this issue.  
  
"Well Genma, are you going to release them or will I have too do what your honourless self will not."  
  
Genma mentally jumped for joy as he realized the one thing he could get leverage on Nodoka with was right in front of him.  
  
"Wife, this is a matter of honour, the uniting of the Saotome and Tendo clans, I will not allow you to stain the honour of our clans with your actions."  
  
Nodoka reeled back as if struck by her husband's words, taking a step back and lowering her head so her hair fell over her eyes.  
  
Genma smirked while Ranma despaired; both knew how important honour was to the Saotome Matriarch and Genma had dragged not only their family's honour, but also the Tendo family's honour into it.  
  
Genma gestured for the priest to continue with the ceremony. Only to notice the priest wasn't paying attention, as he was too interested in praying for his own salvation.  
  
"no"  
  
Genma walked over to the priest, missing the inaudible word Nodoka had whispered.  
  
"no."  
  
"What was that Nodoka?" Genma asked, turning to face his wife.  
  
"No." Nodoka said more vehemently.  
  
"What do you mean 'no'?" Genma said moving over to face and confront his wife. He knew she was clutching at threads, no one who believed in honour as much as his wife would stop a matter of honour such as this.  
  
"No!" Nodoka replied, still keeping her head down, eyes hidden behind dark hair.  
  
"Why not, this is a matter of honour, we can't back out from a matter of honour. The schools must be joined."  
  
"NO!" Nodoka's head jerked up, bright flames burning within her eyes, staring straight into the eyes of her husband.  
  
"bu..bu.bu.but," Genma stammered.  
  
"But nothing husband, where the hell do you think you can get off talking to me about honour, he has only known about this arranged marriage for a couple of weeks at most. How did you expect him to deal with knowing he would be forced to live with a girl he has never even met without time to adjust?"  
  
"Arranged weddings are very honourable and the boy should accept that."  
  
"Honourable like our wedding," Genma flinched at Nodoka's words and backed off slightly.  
  
"You remember our wedding don't you, the one which happened after you petitioned my father for a private meeting to discuss our marriage."  
  
Genma too another step back.  
  
"I have no idea what you did or said to him, but he refused your proposal and banned you from ever seeing me again."  
  
Nodoka began to follow Genma, taking a step forwards for every step he took back.  
  
"We eloped do you remember, we eloped and my father disowned me."  
  
Genma had been backed to a wall with his normally perfectly composed wife still advancing on him with fire in her eyes.  
  
The Saotome patriarch tried to say something, but found that his voice wouldn't come to his defense. He tried to run away, but learned that his legs had turned to jelly and were barely able to keep him standing.  
  
"I sacrificed my family honour to be with you. If our son has to do the same thing to be with the woman he loves, I will cope with that, but you husband dear, you will not force him and Akane Tendo together or try to trick him into getting married or I will enact the Seppuku contract just for you and you alone to fulfill do you understand me?" Nodoka's face was only inches away from Genma's own.  
  
Genma was sweating heavily under his wife's torturous gaze.  
  
"They're gone," Soun's voice broke the intense pressure building between the married couple's staring contest.  
  
Turning their heads to look at where their children had been sitting greeted the parents, if any of them could truly claim the title, with nothing but two over turned and empty wheelchairs and the remains of the bindings.  
  
"Akane, my dear Akane has run off and left her dear father, she ran away from her own wedding." Soun blubbered.  
  
"Ranma, that ungrateful boy, how dare he dishonour his father so, why I should," Genma began to rant as he usually did, unfortunately he had forgotten one detail before he begun this tirade.  
  
* Shink *  
  
His wife.  
  
"GENMA," Nodoka growled glaring at her husband venomously.  
  
* Slice *  
  
Genma ducked under the katana as it whistled past his head, slicing a long gash through the wall of the dojo easily.  
  
"Now dear," Genma started to say, sliding along the wall, edging towards where the dojo's door used to be.  
  
"Genma Saotome, prepare to die!" Nodoka yelled, charging her husband, fury blazing in her eyes.  
  
Genma in a very rare show of manhood stood his ground.  
  
For about two heartbeats before turning tail and running for his life. Genma blew out of the dojo moving as fast as his feet could carry him with Nodoka hot on his heels.  
  
Soun just stood in the dojo crying his eyes out while the priest seeing his chance arrive, fled the dojo as fast as his own legs could carry him, pausing only long enough to leave the number for a good exorcist.  
  
Soun remained in the dojo crying for a few more minutes until he was in danger of dehydration and left to get something strong to drink.  
  
After all the drama in the dojo it had very quickly emptied of people each with their own intents.  
  
"Alright, they're gone I think, it should be safe now." A voice from somewhere within the dojo said.  
  
Two figures appeared lying on the floor of the dojo between the two wheelchairs, arms intertwined.  
  
Akane sighed in contentment, just because they were safe, didn't mean she couldn't hold Ranma a little longer.  
  
"Are you ok Ranma?" Akane asked her fiancée, voice full of concern.  
  
Ranma who had taken in more of the gas than Akane was only able to nod very slightly and emit a very faint "fine".  
  
Akane smiled benignly at her baka fiancée.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flashback to a few minutes ago, Tendo Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
While their parents were distracting each other Akane's aura had singed enough of her ropes she could break free.  
  
Unable to walk she had used the very handy wheels of the wheelchair where she moved herself over to Ranma and began working on his straps with her barely functional hands eventually managing to get them undone.  
  
She had seen he was in even worse shape than she was and so she had tried to pull him onto her wheelchair so she could escape.  
  
Unfortunately all this had accomplished was unbalancing both wheelchairs and spilling the two on the floor. Thankfully their parents were so caught up in their arguments they didn't notice, but the priest had. Fortunately for Ranma and Akane he stayed quiet while staring at the glowing devil comatose fiancés suddenly moving around.  
  
Akane held on to Ranma with one arm and began dragging the two of them towards the exit and hopefully towards somewhere they could hide from their fathers and from Ranma's mother. "stop," Ranma was able to whisper out, "wait."  
  
Akane had stopped crawling and turned to look at her fiancée who had his eyes shut and sweat beading on his forehead.  
  
Ranma while unable to move had complete control over his chi. He began focusing as hard as the drugs in his system would allow him to. Mentally he worked through the steps of the umisenken without actually being able to go through them physically.  
  
Akane almost gasp as she saw her father's eyes turn to where they were laying. When his eyes widened in surprise she knew that her father saw them. The gig was up as Soun turned back to speak with Ranma's arguing parents.  
  
"They're gone," Soun's voice broke the intense pressure building between the married couple's staring contest.  
  
All three adults turned their heads towards where Ranma and Akane lay, their gazes taking in the upset wheelchairs, the slipped bindings, but most importantly wandering unseeing over the two martial artists right in front of their eyes.  
  
Soun was the first to speak.  
  
"Akane, my dear Akane has run off and left her dear father, she ran away from her own wedding." He blubbered.  
  
Chaos broke out soon after that statement when Genma interjected his own opinion and almost lost his head to Nodoka's katana.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Present, Tendo Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"How long do you think it will be before we regain control of our bodies again?" Akane asked Ranma, not really expecting an answer, just wanting to lay there and get some sleep.  
  
Ranma gave a very slight shrug as an answer.  
  
"Yeah, that's what I thought." Akane sleepily answered, falling asleep after having worn herself out fighting to move her body.  
  
"tomboy," Ranma weakly yet affectionately whispered before letting his eyelids drop and joining his fiancée in the bliss of sleep.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Within an onyx room two figures watched the goings on through a shimmering pool.  
  
"Well that was anti-climactic if I do say so myself." The armoured figure stated, not looking up from the scene playing out before it.  
  
"Not every situation can be solved with mass bloodshed and destruction." The cloaked figure replied with only partial levity.  
  
The armoured figure looked up from the pool to face its counter-part whom was still huddled over the pool. A strange twinkle was in the blue eyes of the armoured figure.  
  
"Why not, more controversy in human or otherworldly history has been solved with violence than any other solution?"  
  
"Does that make it right?" The cloaked figure queried, finally looking up from the pool.  
  
"Does that make it wrong either?" The armoured figure shot back.  
  
"There are better ways to deal with this situation than violence."  
  
"Of course, but you were always better at the subtle intrigues than I was." The armoured figure sat down upon its black throne.  
  
"I thought you were going to deal with this in your own way."  
  
"I feel it will be safer for us if I stay out of things for the time being."  
  
"A wise choice, we would not wish to arouse the wrath of any more beings than we already do."  
  
"In that case I leave this in your very capable hands." The armoured figure stated, waving a hand dismissively.  
  
With their discussion complete the cloaked figure walked away from the room, leaving the armoured figure alone to watch the going on of everyone's favorite pigtailed martial artist and his fiancée.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Ummm, do you think they're going to let us down anytime soon?" Asked Daisuke as he stared down at the sleeping forms of the almost married Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo.  
  
"ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ," Hiroshi, having gotten bored with the proceedings after the woman had left chasing the fat guy who jumped them had fallen asleep.  
  
"Why me?" Daisuke quietly, so as not to wake up either of the people sleeping on the floor, complained with tears running down his cheeks.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 18, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
This was a rather slow chapter I know, I intended more to happen than really did, but I felt that it would have taken away from the main part of this chapter if I had thrown in anything more.  
  
Nodoka is back again, and ready to cut of Genma's head for him, but the question is does she also want Ranma's to go beside it. In chapter seventeen she was feeling remorse for how she treated him, does this mean she won't make him carry out the seppuku contract or will she make Ranma uphold the promise.  
  
Ryoga's illusions are beginning to weaken or was it just momentary indecision on his part. Will his rage carry him onwards or will he finally listen to reason like Akane finally did. Of course Akane did have to die before she finally came to see she was fooling herself, will Ryoga's epiphany come at less of a price.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send an e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	19. Is He Strong Enough

One Last Chance Ch.19  
  
**** Is He Strong Enough ****  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for the entertainment purposes of both myself and the readers of this story, and I am making no money off it in any way shape or form.  
  
AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice.  
  
"Speech"  
  
'Thoughts'  
  
* Sound effects *  
  
~~~~Scene change/flashback~~~~~~  
  
{Signs}  
  
Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. A martial arts challenge has been put forth from Ranma and Akane to Mikado and Azusa, which will determine the ownership of Akane's ring. The twist to this is that Ranma and Akane challenged the golden pair to a proper martial arts match and not a martial arts skating match. Upon arriving home the pair received packages from their fathers, which turned out to knock them unconscious. The pair was then rushed to the dojo where Genma and Soun tried to get them married. Due to the timely intervention of Ryoga and Nodoka, Akane and Ranma were able to avoid the marriage attempt. After the day's activities Ranma and Akane were exhausted, falling asleep in the dojo.  
  
"There is a massive range of human emotions, and a massive variance in the strength of them. What is the difference between caring and loving besides the stress implied to the word, hatred and dislike, same case? Are hatred and love truly that different. You can love to hate someone or hate yourself for loving someone. Which emotions are negative, which are positive, is lust healthy or damaging?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, morning ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Wake up Akane-chan, Ranma-kun."  
  
A soft, sweet voice cut through the foggy haze of sleep, stirring the two individuals from their sleep.  
  
Opening their eyes they saw a smiling Kasumi looking down on them.  
  
Blinking a few times Ranma and Akane sat up together, turning their heads and scanning the room, looking for their parents or some other threat.  
  
"Good morning, Breakfast will be ready soon," Kasumi stated, turning and walking towards the dojo exit.  
  
Glancing down Ranma and Akane realized a few interesting facts.  
  
They were both laying on a futon in the dojo.  
  
They had covers on over them and a pillow.  
  
Akane had been changed into her pajamas and Ranma was in his undershirt and boxers.  
  
The couple turned to watch the retreating form of the eldest Tendo daughter as she proceeded out of the dojo.  
  
"Oh, if you wouldn't mind, would you please wake your friends and invite them to dinner as well." Kasumi's voice drifted back through the doorway.  
  
Ranma and Akane glanced at each other in confusion, before as one looking up.  
  
There above them, Hiroshi and Daisuke were still hanging from the ceiling, both asleep.  
  
"I'll wake those two up, you go get dressed, I'm sure those two would love to see you in pajamas." Ranma told Akane, causing her to blush slightly.  
  
With a mutter of, "perverts," Akane left the dojo heading for the house.  
  
Chuckling to himself Ranma stood up slipping into a new pair of clothes, which Kasumi had thoughtfully left for him beside the futon.  
  
Ranma used his foot to move the futon right below the two slumbering students.  
  
Jumping straight up into the air, Ranma slashed his hand across the rope before landing exactly from where he began.  
  
A moment later his classmates joined him on the floor, landing roughly on the futon and jostling Hiroshi and Daisuke awake.  
  
"Aww mom, just another half hour please," Daisuke said, trying to roll over.  
  
Well maybe not completely awake.  
  
"Wakey wakey Daisuke," Ranma singsonged, nudging his friend with his foot, trying to get him to wake up.  
  
"Morning Ranma, how are you today, enjoy you're honeymoon?" Hiroshi asked with a lecherous grin.  
  
"We didn't get married Hiroshi, we avoided that," Ranma replied, rolling his eyes while his nudges turned into small kicks.  
  
"I'm awake, I'm awake," Daisuke finally stated, waking up from a rather pleasant dream.  
  
"Well that's good." Ranma commented before turning and walking for the door.  
  
"Umm Ranma, do you think you could untie us please?" Daisuke called to Ranma's retreating form.  
  
"Fine," Ranma sighed, walking back to the bound pair. Reaching down he snapped the thick lengths of rope with his hands.  
  
"Come on you two," Ranma said, dragging Hiroshi and Daisuke to their feet and pushing them towards the house.  
  
"Umm, what was that all about last night anyway Ranma, with that whole marriage thing and the woman who said she was your mother?" Daisuke asked.  
  
"Yeah she was hot I wouldn't OWWW." Hiroshi yelped, as Ranma bashed him not very gently on the back of his head.  
  
"She's my mother don't talk about her that way." Ranma warned his friend.  
  
"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry," Hiroshi said, covering the back of his head with his hands.  
  
"So Ranma, what was that all about last night anyway, with that whole marriage thing?" Daisuke asked, leaving out the dangerous question about Ranma's mother this time.  
  
Ranma couldn't help but sigh; it was going to be a long day.  
  
"Listen, this is the way it is, Akane and I want to get married, just not yet, we want to take it slowly and not rush it," Ranma began to explain hiss and Akane's unique relationship to his schoolmates, leaving out certain obvious details such as dragons, phoenixes, gods, time-travel, and all the insanity to come, this made for a less interesting, but more plausible story.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dining room, Tendo House ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"My daughter and son-in-law have come back," Soun wept freely when Ranma entered the room, "the schools will be joined."  
  
Ranma scanned the room, taking note of the occupants; thankfully his parents were still out somewhere else it seemed so he wouldn't have to deal with them.  
  
Kasumi had already set most of the table and was even now bringing in the last of the food for breakfast.  
  
Nabiki was sitting against a wall appearing to be reading a manga, although whether or not she was actually reading the manga or not was questionable.  
  
Soun was sitting at the table with a newspaper crumpled in his hands while he wept openly and spouted out nonsense that Ranma really didn't care to listen too.  
  
"As much as things change," Ranma muttered under his breath before leading Hiroshi and Daisuke to the table and pushing them down into sitting positions.  
  
Soun's water works ended when he saw the two guests sit down at the table.  
  
"Good morning," Soun gruffly greeted before opening up the newspaper and began reading the news, completely ignoring the rest of the room.  
  
"Good morning," Akane greeted as she rushed into the room in her school uniform, "Come on Ranma, we've got to get to school."  
  
"We don't have school today, remember." Said Daisuke.  
  
"We don't, but it's a weekday," Ranma replied slightly confused.  
  
"National Samurai and katana appreciation day," Hiroshi corrected Ranma.  
  
"You weren't around for him, but Furinkan used to have a real principal, not just the acting principal who is really the vice-principal," Daisuke explained.  
  
"He was really strange from what I can remember, but one of the things he did that was good was change Furinkan over to an American school schedule, which was really big considering how obsessed he was with Japanese culture and history, and he instituted a bunch of weird holidays," Hiroshi continued.  
  
"Yeah, Honour day, Seppuku day, even gaijin day, and a bunch of other holidays for no reason. Then one year he just upped and left to America leaving nothing but a note saying, 'I will return to this high position of honour when I have learnt the true mastership of teaching.'" Daisuke finished.  
  
"He sounded like Kuno," Ranma was genuinely surprised, the only Principal Kuno he knew was the shear wielding, Hawaii-shirt wearing, funny speaking person who came back to Furinkan seemingly just to make his life miserable.  
  
"To a point yeah, but from what I heard he lived to make everyone's lives miserable. Of course I'm sure most of it was made up, he left a few years before we were old enough to go to Furinkan so this is mostly hearsay." Hiroshi shrugged.  
  
"Then why didn't the vice-principal change it back to a regular schedule and get rid of the holidays?" Ranma asked, he couldn't believe he'd never heard any of this before. It sounded like insanity had come to Nerima and Furinkan before he had arrived. Why had no one ever mentioned it to him before?  
  
"Yeah I remember that," chimed in Akane, "Kasumi was the last class who actually had him, we were still in middle school while all that stuff happened. As for the vice-principal, he was happy to have less work and just went along with anything the way it was."  
  
"I think he was scared of the old principal coming back." Hiroshi chuckled.  
  
"Well since he's been gone so long, I don't think we need to worry about seeing him again before we graduate." Daisuke threw in, eliciting an unseen shudder from Ranma and Akane, who both knew that Daisuke had unwittingly just sealed his own doom.  
  
The conversation trickled off as the last of the food was laid out and Kasumi began serving food.  
  
Everyone began digging in to Kasumi's delicious cooking.  
  
Daisuke and Hiroshi realized that even if it meant being kidnapped and tied up, not that Hiroshi really minded being tied up as long as there was a show like the one last night to go along with it, they needed to come back here to eat Kasumi's cooking.  
  
Soon breakfast was over and it was time for Hiroshi and Daisuke to leave. Their parents would be worrying soon.  
  
"I'll walk you guys back if you want," Ranma offered his two 'friends'.  
  
"Sure Ranma, that'll be fine." Hiroshi said while thinking, 'If Ranma walks home with us maybe something exciting will happen to him and we'll get to watch.'  
  
"Yeah Ranma, that's cool." Daisuke said while thinking, 'If Ranma walks home with us maybe if something happens he'll be able to deal with it while Hiroshi and I sneak away.'  
  
Ranma could only stare at the strange look and slight smile his two fellow students had in their eyes.  
  
"Ummm, okay then, lets go."  
  
With that the three of them left, leaving just the Tendo's in the house... all alone.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima, ten minutes later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"So Ranma, tell us a bit about yourself." Daisuke prompted.  
  
"Yeah, what have you been up too in your life before you came to this crazy town?" Hiroshi asked, drawing a knowing smirk from Ranma, which went, unnoticed by his walking companions.  
  
"Well when I was about four or five my father took me away from my mother after promising her that if I didn't return as a man among men I would commit seppuku with my father with my mother as our second. After we were dead she would kill herself, thus ending the Saotome line. From there I traveled around Asia with my father who trained me in crazy martial arts techniques on of which took away part of my sanity, while giving me none of the love a growing human requires. In addition to that he taught me no manners and permanently scarred me by filling my head with nonsense about women and anything that wasn't martial arts."  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke were staring at Ranma with a little awe, a little fear, and a lot of disbelief. Ranma was talking in a matter of fact tone without really putting much emotion into the story one-way or the other.  
  
"But the best part is yet to come, along the way he soled me to other people as a fiancée for their daughters in exchange for food, sometimes as little as a bowl of rice, a piece of fish, and two pickles. Every single time he stole me back and ran away having never cared about fulfilling the promises he made to any of the others. We traveled to China where he knocked me into a spring where I got a curse, now I live my life in fear of cold water splashing me."  
  
Ranma didn't even realize what he had just said, causing Daisuke and Hiroshi to look at him funny.  
  
"In addition, while I was in China I got my own personal assassin hunting me down from a backwards warrior tribe in a backwards part of China who wants to kill me because of my curse and if she knew the truth she'd want to marry me."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outskirts of Tokyo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"ACCCHHHOOOOO, Aiya, Shampoo hope she not come down with anything"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Street of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Hiroshi had a feeling Ranma had to be pulling their leg with this bit.  
  
"Now I come back to Nerima and get surprised by the fact I now have a fiancée that my father wants me to marry along with a horde of girls who want to marry me and all have technically valid claims to me. I was also told my entire life that my mother was dead, but then am suddenly told about the seppuku clause and find out my mother just might make me go through with it because of my curse. In addition to that the girl who I love and who loves me are being forced into marriage attempts by our fathers before we are ready to be married just because there are not willing to wait."  
  
Ranma suddenly turned and punched a telephone pole in anger. Hiroshi and Daisuke stared in amazement as the pigtailed martial artist's fist rather than having every bone in his hand went straight through the pole like out of a movie.  
  
A police officer standing ten feet away could only stare before coming to the conclusion that he hadn't seen anything, after all people just didn't put theirs fist through solid steel. In the old Nerima before Ranma died, the officers of Nerima had become very good at looking the other way when an incident like this happened. The fact that the crime rate of Nerima went down exponentially in all areas besides property damage which had increased drastically before flattening out, allowed the police to continue this policy allowing the officers to get back to what they considered to be important, 'Protecting the local doughnut and coffee shops.' So there was no way a kid could do something like that, no need to talk to the kid or file a report, might as well just go get a doughnut.  
  
"Umm, what curse Ranma?" Asked Daisuke, trying to ignore the whole superhuman feat Ranma had just performed, after all, he did vanish into thin air last night, so it would make sense that he'd have super human strength.  
  
Hiroshi just stood there imaging what would have happened had it been his head and not he light pole. Not a very pleasant picture to be sure.  
  
'Woops,' Ranma thought to himself, he hadn't meant to reveal that part to these two, it had just gotten so second nature to accept and talk about his curse that he hadn't thought about the fact nobody but the Tendo's knew about it.  
  
"Well you see I just get bad luck that this witch doctor person I went to cursed me or at least said I was cursed." Unfortunately for him, dieing hadn't improved Ranma's ability to lie convincingly, that particular trait went entirely to Genma.  
  
"Really," Daisuke deadpanned.  
  
"Oh come on, out of all the story that's the only detail you have trouble dealing with?"  
  
Hiroshi shrugged, "You're a strange guy Ranma, I think curses are cool, so what is it?"  
  
"Yeah come on, tell us," Daisuke prompted.  
  
"Listen, it's not important, it's just a minor little thing that doesn't matter," Ranma protested backing away from Hiroshi and Daisuke waving his hands in front of himself defensively.  
  
"Come on Ranma, tell us." Daisuke said  
  
"Yeah, what's the big deal?" Hiroshi asked.  
  
Hiroshi and Daisuke backed Ranma against the fence, crowding him in.  
  
Ranma was getting quite nervous; after all it wasn't like he could fight these two. Glancing behind himself Ranma inwardly cursed, he was backed against a rickety fence overlooking a canal.  
  
'What's with Nerima and all these waterways?' Ranma internally asked himself  
  
Unfortunately a car came along at that moment through a puddle of water that had settled right next too where the three boys were standing. The water from it splashed perfectly to hit the group.  
  
"Aww great, now I'm wet." Daisuke complained.  
  
"Me too," Hiroshi groused, patting at his wet clothing.  
  
"You ok Ranma?" Daisuke asked the pigtailed martial artist.  
  
Ranma could only stare in shock at his two friends while trying to slow down his heart. Patting himself in certain places Ranma came to two conclusions. Firstly, he wasn't a female and secondly he was dry. Ranma stared at Hiroshi and Daisuke, they had acted as a shield and all the water had splashed on them and not him.  
  
"Damn, let's get to my house and change out of these clothes." Hiroshi sighed as he began trudging towards his home.  
  
"Ok, I think I still have some clothes over at your place." Daisuke agreed.  
  
The two began walking towards their house at a faster pace.  
  
"We can get home from here Ranma, thanks for walking us this far." Hiroshi thanked Ranma.  
  
"Yeah man, we'll see you at school." Daisuke agreed, just wanting to get out of the wet clothes he was wearing.  
  
"Bye," was all Ranma could bring himself to say.  
  
"I didn't get hit by the water." Ranma still shocked said.  
  
"I didn't get hit by the water." A smile formed on Ranma's face  
  
"I DIDN'T GET HIT BY THE WATER." Ranma happily yelled.  
  
A moment later a car came by, hitting the puddle of water. In hind thought, Ranma realized she should have moved away from such a large puddle.  
  
So with a sigh Ranma began trudging home.  
  
"What else do you have for me today?" Ranma asked the heavens.  
  
The heavens responded.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo house, a few minutes later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Oh my, it seems to be raining," Kasumi commented as she entered the living room with some tea and cookies, "the weather report said it was going to be a bright sunny day."  
  
"Looks like it's clearing up already," Nabiki commented.  
  
"I hope Ranma's ok." Akane said looking out onto the once raining backyard.  
  
"Don't worry about that ungrateful boy, he'll be fine," Genma replied eyeing the plate of cookies with a lust that would probably make Nodoka jealous is she was around.  
  
"Oh you make your poor old father so happy showing such concern for your dear fiancé, we should have a wedd" * GRRRRRRRR * "ing." Soun and the rest of the room stared in shock at Akane.  
  
Akane could only blink, she hadn't meant to growl like that, it had just come out when her father began butting in on her and Ranma again, forcing them into a marriage too soon.  
  
"Excuse me," Akane said, rushing out of the room and up the stairs leaving the rest of the family to watch her exit.  
  
"Oh my," was the only sound that followed her out of the room.  
  
"Tendo, your daughters are strange."  
  
"She didn't used to be like this before her dear mother died, WAAAAAAAAH."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
* Splash *  
  
"AHHHH, that feels so much better." Ranma said to himself, completely ignoring the stupefied look of the shopkeeper and the other patrons in the restaurant.  
  
"Thank you," Ranma said, handing the empty teacup back to the shopkeeper who was only able to take it out of reflex.  
  
Geez you'd think these people had never seen a martial artist with a curse before. Ranma thought to himself as he walked out of the store and down the street, ignoring the bewildered stares that followed him out of the restaurant.  
  
A few steps later his danger sense went off from an impending threat. As Ranma extended his senses time seemed to slow around him as the martial artist felt out his area.  
  
Ranma wasn't able to keep a smirk from entering his face as he sensed the descending threat. Whoever it was, although he could make a guess, had put themselves into a high jump that would take them several seconds to reach the ground from the apex.  
  
Ranma calmly stopped walking and waited for his latest assailant to land.  
  
Ryoga came down umbrella first landing right on top of where Ranma was, had he not stopped walking.  
  
"Damn it Ranma, first you run away from our fight and now you hide from me." Ryoga cursed.  
  
"Hey P-Chan," Ranma greeted, standing not five feet behind the fanged lost boy.  
  
"P-Chan?" Ryoga asked in confusion, turning around to face his nemesis.  
  
Ranma internally winced again; he had forgotten that Ryoga hadn't even heard that name yet. He really had to remember to watch his words more often.  
  
"Never mind that," Ryoga yelled, dismissing the issue as Ranma attempting to mislead him and distract him long enough to escape from Ryoga's hard earned vengeance. "I'm here to pay you back for what has happened to me."  
  
"And what would that be Ryoga," Ranma asked a hint of anger entering his voice.  
  
"Ranma Saotome, thanks to you I've," Ryoga began.  
  
"You've seen hell, I know, I know, you've said it before and I'm sure you're going to say it again." Ranma interrupted. "So what are you going to do about it?"  
  
Ryoga's blood began to boil; during his life Ryoga had always had a short fuse. He had never had many friends during his life as his prodigious strength made many people afraid of him. They wouldn't even talk to him, and then he had come, Ranma Saotome.  
  
Ranma Saotome, he had made Ryoga more of an outcast, the pigtailed martial artist had belittled him and humiliated him in front of all the others. Had his nemesis stayed, Ryoga was sure that after he had beaten Ranma Saotome all the other boys would be is friends and they wouldn't mock him.  
  
This hadn't happened either, Ranma had run off and people had ridiculed him, no one listened to his side of the story fairly, they had mocked him, until finally Ryoga couldn't take it and he had gone to finish his fight with the person who made everyone dislike him and had ruined his life.  
  
Then Jusenkyo happened.  
  
"Ranma for what you've put me through I will not stop until I have destroyed your happiness."  
  
"You might as well tell me what I did before you attack me Ryoga otherwise I wouldn't know what your reasons are."  
  
"Revenge is a good enough reason for your final moments." Ryoga yelled, charging with his fist cocked back for a devastating punch.  
  
Ranma just stared there in shock at Ryoga telegraphing his move so obviously that he almost forgot to dodge, allowing Ryoga's fist to come within centimeters of his face.  
  
Ryoga internally cheered, Ranma wasn't so tough as he had expected if he could barely dodge such an obvious punch, oh well Revenge was revenge no matter how sweet.  
  
Ryoga opened up with a combination of simple punches that would crush anybody.  
  
Ranma merely stepped in between the punches, arriving a few inches in front of Ryoga's nose.  
  
"Not bad for a beginner," Ranma mocked Ryoga while weaving effortlessly through the lost boy's punches.  
  
"Damn you Ranma, stand still and take your beating like a man," Ryoga cursed, becoming frustrated by how his punches met with nothing but afterimages and air.  
  
"Fine Ryoga, I will," Ranma replied, stopping his dodging and standing a meter or two away from the fanged martial artist.  
  
So surprised was he by his foes compliance, Ryoga just stood there for a moment, his fist still extended from where the last of Ranma's afterimages used to be.  
  
"Fine, if you won't do anything I will pork chops," Ranma called out before rushing forwards and slamming his fist into Ryoga's chest  
  
"Is that what you wanted Ryoga?" Ranma asked haughtily.  
  
Ryoga stared at him wide eyed.  
  
Ranma stared back, waiting for Ryoga to bellow at him and attack or criticize how weak his punch had been.  
  
The pigtailed martial artist was not ready for Ryoga to start coughing. Blood came from Ryoga's mouth with the coughs as Ryoga sunk down on his knees before fainting.  
  
Ranma stared at the lost boy lying unconscious on the ground and then to his fist, back to his injured rival.  
  
Not wasting anymore time, Ranma hoisted Ryoga's pack onto his shoulders before carefully scooping up the lost boy in his arms and running for Doctor Tofu's clinic as fast as his legs would carry his cargo and himself.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A few minutes later, Tofu's Clinic ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tofu was sitting quietly reading a book and enjoying a cup of tea. He didn't have any more appointments today and was relaxing, allowing his mind to focus on the task at hand. He had just bought an extremely valuable book and was studying it intently learning its secrets and making them his own.  
  
'No more appointments today,' Tofu mentally repeated for the umpteenth time since starting the book, 'unless there's an emergency I can get on with my studies.'  
  
A large crash in the other room made Tofu's head jerk up to stare at the wall as if it were a window instead.  
  
"Dr Tofu, we need your help, Ryoga's hurt bad." Ranma voices came through the wall.  
  
Giving himself a rueful smile Tofu made his way towards the reception area.  
  
"Speak of the devil," Tofu mumbled to himself, and then paused as a cold shudder ran down his spine.  
  
Entering the reception area Tofu saw Akane's new fiancée standing there carrying an enormous backpack and an unconscious youth.  
  
All humour pushed was pushed aside when Tofu saw the blood on the stranger's lips.  
  
"Please carry him into the other room Ranma." Tofu instructed the pigtailed teenager, while leading the way himself.  
  
Ranma obediently followed.  
  
"Please put him down there," Tofu instructed, pointing to a bed in the room.  
  
Ranma gently lowered Ryoga onto the indicated bed and took a step back allowing Tofu to step close and examine his wounded rival.  
  
Passing his hand over Ryoga with a feather's softness Tofu examined the unconscious boy, marveling at the surprising strength of the individual who was obviously a martial artist, but doing a double take of the elongated canines before ruling the teeth as irrelevant.  
  
"Four of his ribs are broken," Tofu stated allowed, more for Ranma's benefit than his own, "shouldn't be too hard to fix." Tofu reached down, placing his hands on Ryoga's chest.  
  
The following snapping sounds made Ranma go a little pale. 'A human body shouldn't make those sounds.' He thought to himself while watching in morbid fascination, unable to tear his eyes away from the sight.  
  
Tofu pulled out a needle with something in it and put it into Ryoga's arm injecting the liquid into the unconscious lost boy.  
  
"Don't worry it's just something to help him sleep," Tofu told Ranma seeing the worried look on the young man's face.  
  
A few moments later, Tofu looked up smiling before stepping away from the bed and turning to face Ranma.  
  
"Your friend will be fine, he just needs several weeks to heal and he should be good as new."  
  
Ranma had a feeling Ryoga would take less time than that, but there was no point in saying so.  
  
"I almost killed him didn't I?" Ranma asked, his facial expression and tone unreadable.  
  
"Not quite," Doctor Tofu stated, trying to assuage some of Ranma's guilt, "Had he not received proper medical attention and had he been hit in the chest again, then yes it would have been very serious and maybe fatal, but that is neither here nor there so let's not worry about that."  
  
Tofu's reassuring words and manner relieved Ranma fears causing him to let out a sigh of relief.  
  
"Now Ranma, why don't you tell me who this is and what happened to him?" Tofu asked, leading Ranma out of the room and into his office. Once into the office, he gently pushed Ranma down into a chair and went to make some tea for the two of them.  
  
Ranma sat down in the chair and just stared at the doctor's back, trying to think of what he was going to say.  
  
"Ranma...Ranma." Doctor Tofu's voice jolted Ranma out of his thoughts.  
  
"Here you are Ranma," the doctor said, placing a warm glass of tea into the pigtailed boy's hands.  
  
"Thanks doc," Ranma replied, sipping on his tea.  
  
"Now Ranma, why don't you tell me who that young man is and what happened to him?"  
  
"That's Ryoga, I knew him a when we were both kids in school."  
  
Ranma paused to sip his tea again, Tofu just sat watching him, wary of giving any more prompting.  
  
"We'd always fight over stuff and practice against each other," another sip, "well before pops dragged me away we were scheduled to fight."  
  
"And you weren't able to show up?"  
  
"Nah, just the opposite. I showed up and waited for three days before pop dragged me away after I passed out."  
  
"So he forfeited," Tofu stated.  
  
"Well he doesn't see it that way, he got lost and when he arrived on the fourth day ready to fight I was gone."  
  
"Where was this place that took him four days to get too?" Asked the doctor.  
  
"It was the empty lot behind his house, maybe fifteen meters away from his front door."  
  
Tofu could only stare in shock.  
  
"Well I haven't seen him for years until just the other day when he showed up and swore vengeance against me."  
  
"Why would he do that?"  
  
"Oh, he has a Jusenkyo curse that he blames me for giving to him."  
  
Tofu knew Ranma was leading up to something, but he felt the need to ask another question.  
  
"Did you give him the curse Ranma?"  
  
The pigtailed martial artist squirmed slightly under Tofu's gaze.  
  
"Sort of, I was chasing pops and didn't see him and accidentally knocked him into the cursed springs, but he doesn't know it was me." Ranma hastily added causing the doctor to raise a questioning eyebrow.  
  
"What do you mean by that?"  
  
"Well pop and I were cursed at the time and I didn't know I could change back so I was chasing him and must have bumped Ryoga, so he didn't know it was me. He just blames me since he was following me."  
  
The door burst open, knocking the door out of the frame sending it crashing to the door.  
  
"Ranma, I knew it was you, because of you I've seen hell, prepare to die."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A few minutes ago, Tofu's clinic ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'Uggh, I feel like I've been hit by a train.' Ryoga thought to himself. He groggily pushed back the black clouds of sleep, trying to regain consciousness.  
  
His ribs ached and his chest felt like he had stood in the way of a wrecking ball.  
  
'Actually that wrecking ball hurt less than this did.' Ryoga joked to himself, using his elbows to push himself up to a sitting position.  
  
He shook his head trying to clear more of the clouds from his mind. Using one of his hands, he probed around his head for any injury. There were none, but then why did he feel so groggy.  
  
Sliding his legs off the edge of the bed he tried to stand up. He had to catch himself before he fell. His legs were weak and felt like jelly, if the fanged boy hadn't grabbed onto the bed's edge he would have fallen on his face.  
  
Ryoga made his way to a sink close to the door.  
  
'Maybe a drink of water will clear my head.' He thought, slowly making his way across the room to the sink.  
  
Putting his head under the sink he ran WARM water over his head and filled a glass with cold water, making sure not to spill any of the cool liquid, as it would inevitably find its way onto his own body and trigger his curse.  
  
Most of the clouds had cleared from his head so Ryoga began looking around for some sign of where he was. To most people waking up in a strange location and not knowing where they are would be a strange and frightening experience. To Ryoga, this was an everyday occurrence and no cause for worry.  
  
'Where am I now, last thing I remember was fighting with Ranma and then he hit me and now I'm here, did he hurt me that badly?'  
  
There were two people talking very close in just another room or two over. Leaning on the wall he made his way through what must have been a doctors clinic towards the voices, maybe they could tell him where he was and what had happened. With any luck he would still be in Tokyo and could find Ranma again quickly.  
  
"Sort of, I was chasing pops and didn't see him and accidentally knocked him into the cursed springs, but he doesn't know it was me."  
  
Ryoga heard Ranma's words and began to get angrier and angrier.  
  
'That Bastard, he gave this curse to me and he never told me. It's Ranma's fault I turn into a little pork dinner. Ranma...Ranma...RANMA. THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT.' Ryoga screamed inside his own head.  
  
Ryoga stared at the door containing the cause of all of his problems. If he could just kill the person beyond that door it would all be better.  
  
Ryoga charged the door, slamming it open and stepping into the room.  
  
"Ranma, I knew it was you, because of you I've seen hell, prepare to die." The lost boy bellowed at his shocked nemesis.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Now ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The enraged Ryoga lunged for Ranma preparing to kill him, when he fell limp to the floor.  
  
Tofu pulled his arm back from the shiatsu point he hit on the back of Ryoga's neck.  
  
"I didn't expect him to be up and about so soon, that tranquilizer should have kept him out for a lot longer than he was. I can't believe he's up and about so quickly." Tofu calmly stated as he check the unconscious lost boy to see if his injuries had been aggravated by his latest activity.  
  
"Give me a hand with him will you Ranma?" Tofu kindly requested.  
  
"Umm sure thing doc." Ranma said helping Doctor Tofu lift the unconscious lost boy of the floor where he was sleeping peacefully and carry him into the clinic area again.  
  
"The sedative I gave him would have knocked out a large man for hours."  
  
Through heavy lidded eyes Ranma looked at Tofu and asked, "Got any horse tranquilizers."  
  
Tofu only stared at the young martial artist in shock before realizing Ranma wasn't joking.  
  
"I'll take care of him Ranma, I think you can go."  
  
Ranma nodded to Tofu and said his farewells before leaving the clinic.  
  
"Are you going to be okay walking home Ranma?" Tofu asked as a reflex.  
  
"Yeah doc, I think I'll be fine. I don't think anyone will mess with me." Ranma replied with a grin. He almost wished someone would try to mug him.  
  
Ranma stepped outside and started walking to the gate when he felt droplets of water on his head. Before he could even blink the light drizzle had turned into heavy rain.  
  
"Well, what I meant," came Dr. Tofu's voice drifting out into the rain, "Was that the weather report said sporadic showers."  
  
Ranma merely glanced towards the heavens, rattled off a string of expletives, and began walking home ignoring the downpour.  
  
"What I don't understand," Ranma said to himself, "is how I hit Ryoga so many times, I meant to only throw one punch, but I'm pretty sure I did more than that."  
  
Ranma began rubbing the offending fist, not noticing the red that danced across the surface of the ruby in his ring before fading out.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, same time ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Akane did your ring just glow?" Nabiki asked her sister.  
  
"I don't think so, why do you ask?" Akane replied, looking down at the ring on her finger.  
  
"I could have sworn that I saw a blue glow streak across it." Nabiki had been reading and just happened to look up when a glint from Akane's ring caught her eye.  
  
"Nonsense Nabiki, it was probably just a trick of the light." Akane argued.  
  
"You're probably right Akane," Nabiki allowed, "just a trick of the light."  
  
Akane looked at the ring on her finger, staring into the sapphire. As she stared into the precious stone, a feeling of warmth and comfort flowed through her making Akane smile blissfully.  
  
A minute or two later, Nabiki just turned away with a shrug thinking, 'I'll never understand love. Now how do I get a satisfactory resolution to this whole Kuno situation.'  
  
Nabiki went back to looking over the engagement contract that her father and Kuno had signed, there had to be a loophole in there somewhere she could use, she just had to find it first.  
  
There had to be.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"What a day, walked Hiroshi and Daisuke home, almost killed Ryoga, and now I got caught in a freak rain shower, which ended almost as soon as it started, then some weird guys with flowers on there head attack me for desecrating their holy flower pot and now I'm covered in potting soil and there isn't even any rain to wash me off." Ranma groused to the heavens.  
  
Ranma was walking back towards the Tendo dojo, what had started out a nice day, waking up in the arms of the woman he loved always counted as a good start, had turned into a pretty normal day in Nerima, except for the amount of damage done to Ryoga over normal. So for all his grumbling and complaining he wasn't that unhappy and had a smile on his face. He didn't even hurt the creep who started hitting on his girl form as he walked home, just ignored him and jumped onto the roof of a nearby building startling the man who had been hitting on him into a stupor.  
  
"RANMA, YOU I KILL."  
  
Ranma leapt straight up in the air, avoiding the throwing daggers, which embedded themselves into the roof where he had been standing.  
  
The purple haired Amazon landed on the roof, drawing her bonbori and getting into a stance to face Ranma where he landed.  
  
"Nihao Shampoo," Ranma said in greeting with a cheerful smile on her face as he greeted 'her' amazon pursuer, enjoying the surprised look on her face.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Streets of Nerima, a few moments ago ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
There was her target, she had been searching most of the day, only taking cover from a cloudburst that poured down a huge deluge of water which had ended almost immediately afterwards, and now she had found the one who had run for so long and gotten so far away from the village and the disastrous battle one the challenge log.  
  
Now she just had to wait for the right moment to make her move. When the red-haired girl jumped onto the roof from the street, Shampoo knew now was her chance.  
  
"RANMA, YOU I KILL!" She yelled out, giving her prey as honour demanded a chance to defend herself.  
  
Pulling a set of throwing daggers from her sleeves she hurled them at her prey's feet. As she expected, the steel only hit the ground as Ranma dodged the thrown blades.  
  
"Nihao, Shampoo," Ranma greeted with a cheerful smile on her face, Shampoo wasn't distracted in the slightest although to any observer the shocked look she showed on her face would have made them think otherwise. She stalked towards him casually and carefully as she approached.  
  
Tensing the muscles in her legs ever so slightly she moved forwards with a smile, "Nihao Ranma."  
  
This move caught the red haired girl unawares and put her off balance long enough to make her move.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ranma POV, same time ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
It was obvious to anyone, even Ranma, that greeting Shampoo like he did had thrown her balance off. She even stumbled a few steps closer to him than before.  
  
Then too Ranma's surprise the Amazon stood up straight, put a smile on her face and said, "Nihao Ranma."  
  
Ranma in all honesty was caught off guard and nearly stumbled forwards. 'What, why isn't she attacking me' the pigtailed martial artist asked himself.  
  
Without warning Shampoo charged forwards executing a secret Amazon technique from which there was no escape.  
  
* GLOMP *  
  
Ranma looked down on himself to see the lavender haired girl's arms tight around him and her head resting below his chin having completed a perfect Amazon glomp.  
  
"Umm, excuse me, but what are you doing."  
  
The Amazon in his arms looked up in surprise.  
  
"Wo Ai Ni, Wo Da Airen." She then proceeded to give Ranma a very passionate kiss taking advantage of his open mouth to slip in a little tongue.  
  
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tendo Dojo, same time ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Akane Tendo gasped and bolted upright into a standing position from where she was sitting in the living room, startling her family and Mr. Saotome.  
  
Akane looked at the four expectant faces staring up at her from where they had been sitting.  
  
"Ranma's in trouble." Was all the youngest Tendo said before running out of the room. A few seconds later the front door was heard opening and closing.  
  
Soun and Genma were the next to stand up. Gripping hands in a hearty handclasp they stared into each other's eyes a growing fire burning within each of their orbs.  
  
"You know what we must do Saotome," asked the Tendo patriarch.  
  
"Yes I do old friend," replied the Saotome patriarch.  
  
"My daughter cares so much for her fiancée."  
  
"The schools will be joined."  
  
Their resolve affirmed, the two older martial artists made their way towards the sake cabinet.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rooftops of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Stay away from me Shampoo," Ranma yelled, leaping from one rooftop to another.  
  
"Wo Ai Ni," came Shampoo's reply as she followed him over the rooftops.  
  
A sudden rise in Ranma's danger sense caused him to leap backwards immediately after landing. Barely avoiding a group of shurikens which imbedded themselves into the roof where he was and would have been had he tried to dodge forwards.  
  
Ranma dropped into a low crouch stance, spreading his senses out searching for his attacker. Shampoo had not thrown those shurikens at him; they had to have come from a different direction than where she was standing. Unless the purple-haired Amazon knew a secret technique she had never shown him in the past, the blades had to have come from someone else.  
  
Unfortunately for him Shampoo merely wanted to cuddle, not attack him, as such he failed to note the rapidly approaching Amazon until she was on top of him, literally.  
  
"Well done son-in-law, you dodged those blades masterfully." Came a familiar voice from behind him.  
  
Turning Ranma came face to face with someone he would have preferred to have viewed from a distance.  
  
"AHHHH, an old Ghoul," He yelled, back pedaling away from the Amazon elder with Shampoo still wrapped around him. Coincidentally it also took him out of striking range of her staff.  
  
"Be more respectful to your elders boy." Cologne snapped, mentally reminding herself to give him an extra hard rap of her staff the next time the opportunity presented itself.  
  
"Fine then, who are you, what are you doing here, what do you want, and what do you mean son-in-law?" Ranma asked.  
  
"You beat my great-granddaughter in combat and now as per our ancient and glorious laws you are married to her." Cologne replied to the young man before her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flashback, several days ago, Amazon Village ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Cologne jerked upright to find herself sitting in her bed, looking around for some sign of what had disturbed her from her dream. She had the feeling of a great sense of wrongness coming from somewhere, but she had no idea where it was or even what was causing it.  
  
Reaching to her neck she felt for the soul stone, which she had sealed Happosai into after the deaths of son in law and the Tendo girl various parties had crippled and damaged the old pervert beyond repair she had taken his soul and imprisoned it within the crystal. This was a punishment reserved for only the worst criminals. Even then it usually took the council a long time, almost a month in the shortest trials to agree on using this punishment. When cologne returned to the village she was fully prepared to defend her case before the council. Of course when she told the council who she had inflicted the punishment upon, the council merely shrugged their shoulders in acceptance while Fa-shen, a healer and the most pacifistic individual on the council, had said, "Couldn't of happened to a worse person."  
  
There had been no punishment for her hasty decision.  
  
The stone wasn't there, Cologne looked around her bed to see if it might have fallen off while she slept although that was extremely unlikely.  
  
Unable to find it, she left her room moving into the common area of the hut she shared with her grand son and her great grand daughter she immediately noticed that there were things wrong with it. Nothing overly noticeable at first, but small things, such as the chair shampoo broke over Mousse's head a week ago was still whole and undamaged, the wall Shampoo threw mousse through a few days ago had no patching in it, the bump in the table where shampoo beat him down with, or .... As a matter of fact just about everything Shampoo had so recently hit Mousse with was whole again or undamaged.  
  
"Good morning Grandmother, are you ok today," Shampoo's father politely asked having seen the disturbed look upon the old woman's face.  
  
"Yes I'm fine thank you, where is Xian pu today," Cologne asked, it was rare although not unheard of for her great granddaughter to get up earlier than herself.  
  
"Why she is still chasing after that red haired outsider that beat her in the tournament a few weeks ago. From her last letter Xian pu reported that she was crossing the sea which separates us from the land of the Rising Sun and would continue tracking her there?" He knew that Cologne had read that most recent letter before he had; in fact he hadn't been allowed to read any of his daughters letters before his grandmother had looked them over.  
  
"Oh No," and those were the last words he heard from her mouth before she shot out the door.  
  
The sentries saw her leaving the village less than an hour later all that she said to the council was that she had to go on a little trip for an indefinite period of time and that she would return. At the conclusion of her trip, the best case scenario said she would return with either one or two powerful new warriors for the tribe and hopefully worst case would be eliminating the single most dangerous threat the tribe had ever faced in its long history.  
  
All Cologne knew was she had to get to Japan, then to Tokyo, and then to Nerima, but most importantly to Shampoo before she made one of the biggest mistakes of her life.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flash forwards Rooftops of Nerima ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Huh?" Ranma intelligently replied. This wasn't meant to happen for a long time still.  
  
'Why couldn't Shampoo be trying to kill me?' Ranma silently asked himself.  
  
'Wow, now that was a stupid thought if I've ever had one,' the pigtailed martial artist kicked himself.  
  
"But I already have a fiancée," Ranma tried to argue, knowing even before he said the words that they would prove useless.  
  
"Ho ho ho ho ho Son-in-law, I really don't think you want to refuse us." Cologne replied.  
  
'Wait a minute she sounds a lot more reasonable this time around than she did all the previous times, usually she just tries to tell me I have no choice in the matter.' Ranma thought.  
  
Shampoo just kept rubbing herself against him and holding him tightly so he couldn't run away.  
  
"Don't I have any say in this matter at all? Do I have any choice?"  
  
"Well everyone always has some say in everything, like when you have a knife to your throat you can always stand still so you don't cut yourself or you can always thrust your throat upon the knife slitting your own throat," the Amazon matriarch replied smoothly, a dangerous glint in her eye.  
  
"Oh and so agreeing you would be like thrusting my throat into the blade." Ranma replied with heavily lidded eyes.  
  
'The boy always did have a bad attitude' Cologne mused to herself, locking eyes with the young man.  
  
'Oh great I really didn't need these two this early on,' Ranma thought to himself, meeting the old ghoul's gaze.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere else ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"The Amazons are there now," the cloaked figure stated.  
  
"My what a firm grip of the obvious you have there," replied the armoured figure.  
  
"So what now," asked the cloaked figure.  
  
"I'm sure that Athena will get involved soon enough if she hasn't already, she and the other gods those accursed amazons follow." The armoured figure groused.  
  
"Yes, so what are we going to do about it this time."  
  
"Well it's quite simple, there are a few of the gods that couldn't care less what any other being says. I merely talked with them for a while and got them interested in actually interfering."  
  
"How many gods are we talking about here," asked the cloaked figure, peering intently at its companion  
  
"Four, and what makes it even better is all of them are chaos gods."  
  
If it were possible a tremor of what might have been fear passed through the cloaked figure's frame.  
  
"You don't mean the four. The four gods. The four gods of chaos. Khorne, Tzeentch, Slaanesh, and Nurgle."  
  
"Indeed I do," the armoured figure replied with a smug voice, "although Nurgle found them altogether far to healthy for his interests and wants nothing to do with them at all. He sees them as the worst form of purity and he will have nothing to do with such disgustingly healthy specimens."  
  
"Well at least we don't have to worry about any plagues, but still those four are insane, why did you get in contact with them, you know how dangerous they are."  
  
"You aren't the only one who is skilled in subtleties. I know what I am doing." The armoured figure stated firmly.  
  
"But still..." The cloaked figure started to reply.  
  
"But nothing, besides even if I wanted to do something about it, which I don't, it would be too late. The four have already turned their eyes towards Nerima."  
  
"May the gods help whoever gets in their way." Stated the cloaked figure in a quiet voice.  
  
As laughing about the chaos gods would be a very bad idea the two merely fell into silence watching for what would happen next.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of chapter 19, TBC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
No way No way Even if it's all up to me Now way No way will I ever give up In this whole wide world you're the only you Walking along the beach in the sunshine Beneath the extended pa pa parasol It's like there's a cleansing wind in my heart Blowing those gloomy thoughts right out Whoa ho my fingers tremble Whoa ho my face grows warm It's the first step No doubt about it It's love You got a problem with that No way No way I'm taking up my stance No way No way Make sure that you land that loving blow on me  
  
AN: Well that's another chapter of the story done.  
  
You'll have to excuse that last little lyrics, I had kind of petered out while writing the story and needed some inspiration. As such I began watching some episodes of Ranma ½ season seven, well I was actually less inspired by the episodes I saw and more inspired by the opening theme.  
  
Due to finals I was no able to write as much as I would have liked on the chapter so I delayed releasing it until Christmas, that way I could make this chapter longer and give everyone a nice Christmas present. Unfortunately I was irrevocably delayed and as tried to upload it the day after Christmas, but lost the file and had to rewrite a good part of the chapter, but as they say, "better late than never." So to welcome in the New Year a little late, I have finished this chapter and am posting it up for everyone's pleasure. University has started again and I wanted to get this chapter up before I really got into my studies. Unfortunately this was not to be the case and I had to delay it again. I never found a really good stopping point for this chapter and couldn't stop writing till I found one. As such this chapter is the longest yet. Midterms are over now and I am on spring break as such I am taking a chance to finish this chapter and get to work on the next chapter.  
  
I intend to have all of the main characters of the Nerima Wrecking Crew on the scene by the end of next chapter if it is appropriate. A few faces might appear a little early and a few faces might appear later, but the most important cast members of Ranma ½ will be on the scene soon enough. In the next chapter the role call will grow with a few familiar names and faces.  
  
For those of you who are familiar with the strategy game, the world of Warhammer or Warhammer 40K, the four gods of chaos are copyrighted by Games Workshop. The four gods of chaos are seen as extremely evil entities. Khorne is the blood god, lord of slaughter. Slaanesh is the dark prince, prince of all dark and unholy pleasures, Tzeentch is known as the changer of the ways, master of dark magics and mutation, and finally Nurgle is known as the lord of decay, he is responsible for diseases, death, and wasting. Together they are known as the four gods of chaos. Just in case anyone is curious the army I play in Warhammer is the Vampire Counts and in Warhammer 40K I play the Tau army. It is an excellent game and while expensive a lot of fun to play. The four gods of chaos and everything from the Warhammer universe are property of Games Workshop and I in no way claim ownership nor am I making any money off of this.  
  
If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send me a e- mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at rhuobhe26@hotmail.com and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.  
  
-Rhuobhe26 


	20. A Day in Nerima

One Last Chance Ch.20

A Day in Nerima

Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and all it's characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi I in no way take credit for them, don't sue, this is just a story for the entertainment purposes of both myself and the readers of this story, and I am making no money off it in any way shape or form.

AN: Quick personal disclaimer, I am writing this for fun, I do not enjoy flames, I welcome constructive criticisms and thoughtful advice. I have a lot on my plate right now and work on this whenever possible which, unfortunately is not as much as I would like too. I apologize for the long wait between chapters.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

Sound effects>

-Scene change/flashback-

Signs

Ranma and Akane died thanks to Happosai, rather than let them die they were sent back in time thanks to Ranma's wish for another chance. Both retain their memories and feelings they accumulated; now they have to survive. A martial arts challenge has been put forth from Ranma and Akane to Mikado and Azusa, which will determine the ownership of Akane's ring. The twist to this is that Ranma and Akane challenged the golden pair to a proper martial arts match and not a martial arts skating match. Knocked unconscious, the pair was then rushed to the dojo where Genma and Soun tried to get them married. Due to the timely intervention they were able to avoid the marriage attempt. The next day as Ranma escorted Hiroshi and Daisuke home he ran into Ryoga. Ryoga got into a fight with Ranma, which resulted in Ryoga sustained a serious injury as a result of Ranma's carelessness. Ranma rushed his rival to Dr. Tofu's clinic as quickly as he possibly could where Ryoga received treatment for his wound. Ryoga also inadvertently learned that Ranma was cursed to turn into a female and that the pigtailed martial artist also happened to be the one who pushed him into the spring of drowned pig. Ranma left the clinic shortly after, leaving Ryoga to recover. On his way back to the Tendo Dojo Ranma in his female form encountered Shampoo. Rather than attacking him, she glomped onto him, gave him the kiss of marriage, and then told him she loved him. Cologne then showed up and told Ranma that the matriarch knew that Ranma was a he and that Ranma was now married to Shampoo.

"All around me are familiar faces, familiar places.

Getting ready for the daily races. Going nowhere, going nowhere."

Song Mad World

By Gary Jules

-Streets of Nerima, Evening-

"How did you know," Ranma asked Cologne, trying to play dumb while ignoring the bouncy, well endowed Amazon who was rubbing up against him.

"How did we know what son-in-law," Cologne asked, also playing dumb, although she knew exactly what he meant.

"How did you know that I was a guy?" Ranma clarified to the Amazon matriarch while trying to maneuver out of Shampoo's grip without touching any of the more intimate areas.

"Well son-in-law, it is quite obvious, all one has to do is merely look at you to see that you are a male and quite a handsome one at that." Cologne fanes a swoon, "if only I was a couple of hundred years younger myself, I would give my great grand daughter a run for her money."

Ranma could not help but shiver as a cold chill goes down his spine at even the thought of being with Cologne.

Ranma tried to ignore the voluptuous Amazon rubbing herself bodily against him. This was made easier by the fact he was trying to stare down the girl's great great grandmother.

"I won't join your tribe." Ranma firmly stated, allowing his battle aura to come forth.

Shampoo jerked away from Ranma as if burnt and stared in shock at the glowing energy around the pigtailed boy. She had only ever seen the elders, or other females when a man did something perverted, put forth a battle aura.

'If she makes me fight I will destroy her.' Ranma told himself. 'I can't allow her to be an enemy, if it comes too a battle, I'll have to finish her off. She and her Great Granddaughter plagued me with their spells and potions for far too long, I refuse too allow her to wreck Akane and my happiness again.'

'But she taught us so much, almost as much as my father.' Ranma replied, 'Akane and I both know things are going to be much harder this time around, Loki told us so.'

'Yes he told us, and do you know what I already know what she taught me, if I kill her now it will take care of the problems she will create for Akane and I.' An evil glint came to Ranma's eyes as he considered the benefits of just getting rid of his enemies right off.

'If they're gone I'll lose the only friends I've had.' Ranma thought sadly, thinking of all the good times that he had with them.

'But I don't need them,' countered Ranma, 'I have Akane and she is all I need, as long as I have her no one else matters. I will destroy anybody I have too if that is what it takes.' Ranma turned his gaze towards Shampoo, 'Of course I'd need to get rid of her as well he thought, otherwise I'd have her entire tribe after me.'

'What am I thinking, killing is wrong, sure Cologne has done some bad stuff, but she has also been there for me during some bad times to help me.'

The internal debate raged on in the troubled martial artist as the two foreigners watched, waiting for the outcome.

Cologne stared intently at Ranma, she had become quite familiar with his aura over the two years she had known him in her previous life, and was able to tell instantly that there was something off with his aura this time around. Unfortunately she couldn't quite put her finger on it without carefully studying him. Something he was sure to refuse in his currently agitated state.

Missed from her observation the ring on Ranma's finger twinkled with an inner flame.

-Woods Somewhere in Europe-

"Where am I now?" Ryoga asked rather quietly.

Not that he'd ever admit it, but Ryoga was a little unnerved by the silence of the forest. Most woods he had camped in were usually bustling with activity; even at night there were sounds that let one know there were birds and animals nearby.

Except for the occasional wolf howling there was an eerie silence penetrating the very air of the woods.

"I'd rather be chased by that crazy girl than spend any more time in this wood." Ryoga quietly said. Remembering the nude woman in the woods who chased him while yelling in some strange language.

In the trees a pair of eyes followed Ryoga's movements through the woods.

Deciding to stop and get his bearing the fanged martial artist sat down beneath a tree and pulled out a map studying the path he'd have to take.

"Bende Nocte" A voice broke the silence of the woods, startling Ryoga who immediately jumped up into a fighting stance, letting the map of the Rio Grande fall to the earth forgotten.

"Where are you," Ryoga asked, looking around the area, but failing to see anybody.

"I don't speak whatever language your talking, would you happen to know English?" The voice asked.

"Yeah I know a little English," Ryoga replied guardedly.

"Excellent, well I said 'Good Evening'." The voice replied amusement hidden in the tone.

"Who are you," Ryoga asked, "and where are you?" Ryoga began turning around, trying to watch all sides at once.

"I am the count Vladimir Von Carstein and you have wandered into my domain." The voice replies.

"I'm just passing through." Ryoga replied flushing slightly.

"Oh and where are you passing through too?"

"I'm trying to get to Nerima."

"I have never heard of this Nerima, where might it be that you must pass through my territory."

"It's in Tokyo." Ryoga replied, embarrassed that he'd wandered into someone's backyard, although he hadn't seen a fence yet.

"Tokyo, as in the capitol of Japan?" The voice deadpanned.

"Yes." Ryoga replied in a rather quite voice, 'damn I must have wandered off track again.'

"You are a little off track young one."

"Really, where am I, Hokkaido, Okinawa, this does look a little like Honshu." Ryoga suggested hopefully, but fearing he was a little further off.

"Try Romania." The voice replied.

"Where's that?" Ryoga asked, cursing as he looked around for the map he dropped and wondering if he had another one.

"It is in Europe, but more importantly it is the last place you will ever visit." Replied the tall man stepping out of the very darkness itself.

The man was tall standing 5'10" he was very pale, but something seemed to burn within his eyes. He was dressed in an archaic nobleman's style, with expensive red and black velvets and silks. He didn't look very physically strong, but he seemed to put out an aura, which suggested a feral rage kept barely in control.

Ryoga picked up on none of this, merely hearing the obvious threat.

Well acquainted with threats himself, Ryoga shrugged off his traveling pack and cracked his knuckles, a fight welcome after walking around for so long.

Vladimir razes an eyebrow seeing prey, which didn't cower and beg for its life like most of the miserable peasants usually did. The nobleman smiled revealing a glistening set of pearly whites, with a pair of elongated incisors.

Ryoga smiled right back revealing his own set of elongated canines. At the sight of his opponents teeth the count faltered thinking he had made a mistake in choosing his prey. Seeing his opponent off balance Ryoga took advantage of the opening, charging forwards and delivering a punishing blow to the European's midsection.

The count was sent flying backwards, his back slamming into a tree. "Are you a child of the night?" The count asked having seen this individual move much faster and stronger than any other human he had ever seen.

"What are you talking about," Ryoga asked, moving in closer to keep pressure on this strange person who wanted to fight and now wanted to talk. He launched a quick kick at the individual's exposed flank.

Vladimir saw the incoming kick and deftly plucked the boy's foot out of the air, slamming him face first into the tree, which the count had just impacted.

"Impudent whelp." The Count growled, swinging the lost boy around and sending him flying back to where his pack was.

Ryoga stumbled back to his feet groaning, how did someone so small produce so much strength. Ryoga looked over as the European stalked towards him. The fangs were unusual, but they were only slightly longer than the ones he had. The fanged boy realized that this person wasn't using any actual martial arts; he was using speed and strength.

Smirking to himself Ryoga launched himself forwards feinting a blow to the Count's head and preparing to follow up with a powerful kick.

Vladimir prepared to block the punch that was coming, surprised when his prey pulled back at the last moment. A smile crept onto the European's face as he saw the kick coming. This mortal was quite a skilled fighter, were he one of the blooded he would be truly powerful.

Ryoga looked down at his leg, grasped firmly within the pale hand, he tried to pull back, but he was off balance and couldn't escape the iron grasp of the Count.

Spinning the upstart around in his grasp the count released Ryoga, knocking him right back into a tree.

"You are a few hundred years to young to deal with me." Vladimir told the boy, stalking over too him. This was such an enervating evening; this child had given him more amusement than any of his previous hunts a hundred years back.

Ryoga groaned, he must have hit his head when the European threw him. Lying on the ground, he tried to stand, but his head was still spinning and he just slid back down the tree.

The Count was almost disappointed when his prey slid back down to the ground. Obviously he had thrown the boy with a bit too much force, but all good things must come to an end, and the hunger was upon him.

The fanged boy watched his opponent stalk towards him, a hungry look in the European's eye. He tried to get up or at least to turn away, but something held him in place.

Vladimir allowed himself a smile as the boy's will struggled against his own, the child was powerful indeed, but he was weak from bashing his head most likely. Opening his mouth the count allowed his incisors to grow to their maximum length.

"Do not worry child, when you awaken the world will be your plaything." Vladimir stated, this Asian boy was worthy of the eternal night, which he and the other nobles shared. This young man would be an excellent heir, Yuri would be jealous.

Ryoga felt his consciousness slipping from him as he felt the Count's hands baring his neck.

-Rooftops of Nerima-

Cologne watched the young man before her, knowing that he might fight her; she could see that it would only take a slight push for him to attack her, at his current level of development he wouldn't be a true danger for another year and a half at least. It wouldn't be long though; last time he was almost her equal when he defeated Herb and his two servants. She hadn't realized how far the boy had risen until he beat Saffron.

"Would you seek to fight me then," Cologne asked, gripping her staff as she faced off with the irritated pigtailed boy in front of her.

Inside Cologne's mind, she knew this was a very pivotal moment; should Ranma choose to fight she would have to fight him.

'And that's where my choice must come.' Cologne didn't want Ranma as an enemy too the tribe, it was not something she could afford.

'He would become too powerful too quickly, and should he some day come back and wish to harm us, I fear for the future of the Amazons. If I can't be assured that there is some chance to make him trust us at least partially, then tonight he will die.' Cologne thought too herself, her face hardening as she prepared herself for a task she had no wish to carry out. Unbeknownst to her the Ranma she faced was much more than she thought.

"Not unless you force me too." Ranma replied, causing the Matriarch to release a breath she hadn't even known she was holding.

"I have no wish too fight you old ghoul," The pigtailed boy continued his aura fading, while earning a sharp look from Cologne, too which he was oblivious.

The tense moment having passed, both relaxed, both understanding that something had passed between them, but neither knowing what it was.

-Kuno estate, Nerima Ward, Tokyo, Japan, Asia, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way-

"Ho Ho Ho, brother dearest, why are you so perturbed tonight," Kodachi asked her brother.

Kuno narrowed his eyes, if his twisted sister was asking after his health, he knew it was from anything, but familial concern.

"Why nothing at all sister mine, whatever could have driven you too ask such an inane question of my noble self?"

"OH brother dear, you know I have a great interest in your health, whatever would I do if something happened to you?" Kodachi asked, 'besides throw a party.' She silently added.

'Besides celebrate,' Kuno silently replied, but allowed he said. "Weep I am sure, but do not trouble thyself, tis nothing the master of house Kuno can't deal with." Kuno was growing impatient with his sister's meaningless prattle, usually she didn't bother him unless there was something she wanted.

"Ahh, but you are not master of this house, not as long as our beloved father still lives." Kodachi shot back, unable to resist aggravating further her sibling.

"He has not been master of this house since the cur abandoned us," Kuno shouted back standing, violently shoving the desk he sat behind away, scattering the papers all over the floor.

Kodachi reeled back momentarily from her brother, he often yelled, but rarely did he put so much emotion into his words, usually he merely spouted poetic nonsense.

"He has not been master of this house." Kuno repeated adding, "Not since that night." Kuno's voice grew heavy with emotion, losing volume, "not since that night."

Kodachi felt tears forming in her eyes, she knew what he was talking about, but her pride wouldn't let her back down. "I don't remember you doing anything that night brother mine, what did you do to help our family?"

Kuno recoiled as if struck. "How dare you!" Kuno yelled back, moving closer to his twisted sister, fire shining in his eyes. "How dare you say that, there was nothing I could have done. There was nothing either of us could do, nothing…nothing." Kuno's voice trailed off.

"Excuse me," Kodachi quietly responded, fleeing her brother's room, she ran back to her room as fast as she could, blitzing past the odd servant whom would silently avert their eyes.

Kuno stood, silently watching where his sister had been standing. He stepped forwards, shutting his door and dropping a thick bar into place, sealing out the world. Flipping a switch several iron plates dropped down sealing off the windows. Alone and secure Kuno walked over to his bed. Flipping another switch all the pictures of Akane, which surrounded his walls, were covered.

Still without having spoken the Eldest Kuno sibling opened his bedside table, dodging the knife that was shot out at him from the spring trap. He reached in and pulled out a small rectangular picture frame.

Reverently stroking the picture frame, Kuno stared at the image, slightly faded with time. The picture showed a loving family of four people all together.

The picture showed a father standing just off center, his hand resting on the shoulder of a beautiful woman in a kimono. On the woman's lap was a young girl with beautiful long black hair bounced happily dressed in a white leotard, a shining smile on the daughter's face. The man's other hand rested in front of him upon the shoulder of a young boy in a hakama, the boy clutched a small boken in his little hands while trying to look mature.

"Mother," Kuno breathed out almost inaudibly, a lone tear sliding down his face.

-Elsewhere in the Kuno Mansion-

Quickly disabling the traps at her door Kodachi ran into her bedroom, bolting her door and rearming the traps before proceeding. She hurled herself onto her bed, weeping into a pillow.

"Why mommy, why did you leave us?"

Why, why did she and her brother have to fight? Why did she have to take pleasure in tormenting her brother, as she knew he took pleasure in tormenting her?

Nothing had ever been the same since that night. She couldn't remember everything, but she knew it took her mother away from the family, and nothing had ever been the same since.

They had all tried to escape it, each in their own way. Her father, once considered to be an eccentric, but well respected member of the community had turned into an individual who terrorized his school's populace, both student and teacher. Eventually he retreated to Hawaii for a sabbatical, escaping even the small responsibility

Her brother, while not the best student, he was a good kendoist. After that night, Tatewaki had thrown himself into Kendo with an almost fanatical devotion. He rose from being a talented student of the art too mastering it and surpassing all his teachers. He had suffered too, retreating into his own little fantasy world of feudal times, seeing the world with jaded eyes.

She, well she had done that same thing. Rhythmic Gymnastics and botany had been two small hobbies her mother had introduced her too. Afterwards her hobbies had dominated her life. Warping to fit her needs, she had sworn to be the best and never lose a match in her chosen field, just like her big brother.

When she was twelve, during a rhythmic gymnastics match, her opponent's team member had splashed water on her side of the ring, causing her to slip. From that moment on the black rose had been born. It had started out small, weighting a baton, removing a support here and there, but it had continued to escalate.

Now her opponents never even showed up too matches, those who would not be cowed would be rendered incapable of even competing. In her mind though she always justified it as doing it for her family. Her reasoning had built a prison around her.

"Is this really worth it?" Kodachi asked herself, reaching out to stroke a picture of her mother that sat beside her bed.

"Yes child it is," a sensuous voice spoke to her. Instantly snapping out a baton and pulling her spare ribbon she twirled, pushing herself off of her bed and landing in the center of her room.

"Who dares invade my domicile?" Asked Kodachi, furious at the intrusion. She would make them pay for this offence.

Stepping out of the shadows an individual came forwards, "I do my beautiful child." The individual replied in a husky yet silky voice. "I have come to assist you in getting what you want."

Kodachi looked closely at the intruder. It was hard to tell whether this individual was a man or a woman, unable to tell from even the voice. The stranger had long flowing black hair down the back, an effeminate, but strangely masculine face. From the loose fitting black robes the person wore, she couldn't even tell if there was an Adam's apple or what the person's body looked like.

"Why should I listen too you, how could you even know what it is I desire, I have all I need." Kodachi shot back, extremely unnerved by this strange intruder who had somehow gotten into her room.

"I know your desires my dear," the stranger glided forwards, reaching out and stroking her face.

Kodachi was unable to stop this person as they stepped forwards and stroked her cheek. "Who are you?" she was able to get out. Desire flooded through her, and a need she hadn't even realized before.

"I am Khalmeel," the stranger drew the young girl into an embrace, cradling her as one would their own child. "I know you desire love, I know you desire companionship, I know you desire one who can protect you. I can offer you that."

"You?" Kodachi quietly asked, staring at Khalmeel, 'Can he really protect me, can this man be everything I desire?' Silently asked Kodachi too herself, hope and fear was plainly displayed across her face.

"No child not I," The stranger stated, Kodachi's face fell, "but I know the man for you. He is a noble and skilled individual, he is handsome, strong, kind, and he can be yours."

Kodachi was uncertain, but Khalmeel started massaging her back, whispering quietly into her ear, "He is yours for the taking and he will love you, and you will love him." Promised the angel sent by the gods themselves to assist her.

'He must be an angel, he was made so perfect, coming to me in my hour of need.' Kodachi decided.

"What must I do?" asked Kodachi, resting her head on the angel's shoulder. Unseen by her Khalmeel smiled evilly, displaying a row of razor sharp teeth.

"You must merely win him from one who doesn't truly deserve him, one who abuses him, one who he can't escape from alone. He is bound to her by their family in a relationship he doesn't wish." Khalmeel responded in his silky voice.

"Who is this wondrous man?" asked a breathless Kodachi.

"His name is Ranma Saotome." Replied Khalmeel, laying Kodachi back onto her bed, having picked her up and moved her like she was nothing more than a child.

"Ranma Saotome." Kodachi murmured, lying back in her head with unfocused eyes, looking towards the ceiling.

"Soon child soon." The angel said, heading towards the shadows and the waiting portal, which would take it back too the safety of the warp.

"Ranma," Khalmeel heard Kodachi murmur one final time before stepping through the portal, leaving behind the girl and her room.

The warp portal closed behind the departing form, unseen by Kodachi as she watched the ceiling.

"Ranma-sama." Kodachi breathed out before falling into blissful slumber.

A picture of a woman lay discarded on the floor beside the bed, forgotten about.

-Eye of Terror, The warp-

Back within the arguable safety of the warp Khalmeel's head elongated, a second pair of arms sprouting from below the first. The creature's body started growing until it was twelve feet tall. The robes disappearing as the body expanded, the skin growing extremely pale. Horns extended from the back of the head, while two of the hands expanded into large lobster like claws. It was impossible to determine the creature's gender, yet it appeared to be both. Despite its hideous appearance it exuded sexuality.

Looking into the raging warp the creature by the name of Khalmeel spoke.

"She is yours master Slaanesh."

And within the raging storm of chaotic energy, which makes up the warp, a dark god smiled.

- Rooftops of Nerima -

Unaware of the internal debate going on within her husband, Shampoo watched on with interest. When he stared at her with a strange look in her eyes, a chill went through her spine, and she backed up a step, but then the look passed and a softer, almost fond expression

Shampoo was unable to understand the words of the conversation, but she could read the expressions and body language of both parties. As she watched, she saw her husband get into a fighting stance, as did her great grandmother. They exchanged a few words in that barbaric language of her husband.

'I'll just make sure he learns Mandarin when we return to the village, Rin Shi will be jealous when she sees what a handsome and obviously skilled man she had retrieved. Cute butt too.' Shampoo thought to herself, and seeing her husband's aura fade and an almost content look come to his face.

'He's cute, strong, and skilled. He's perfect.' Shampoo thought too herself. Throwing herself at him again she glomped onto his body, rubbing her own against his. She marveled in the sculpted body beneath her, it was marvelous, almost as if someone had carved him from stone.

She knew that with her own body she would have him in no time, 'After all, males all think with their crotches, especially those her own age.' Shampoo knew this for a fact, having teased and led on many of the boys in the village, at least until that blind fool Mousse had taken a single comment too seriously and started chasing off any male who even looked at her.

She could feel her husband was very tense beneath her grasp; strangely enough he wasn't trying to hold her or do anything a male should try like grope her.

Well she'd just have to help this innocent male along with a little physical encouragement.

-Tokyo, Nerima Ward, park-

Within a poorly lit circle of trees in the park stood a cloaked figure; his body is shrouded in dark black robes. Within the center of the clearing burned a brazier. Charms and wards surrounded the clearing.

Before one tree stood the figure, candles burning on his headband.

"Oh Akane," The thin figured moaned as it sat within a dense circle of trees, "why can't you see I love you and I'm the best for you." He moaned as he drove a spike into the doll, which resembled someone with a long black ponytail and red shirt.

"Ranma can't possibly treat you right like I can." The figure wailed, hammering in another nail.

"Why don't you leave that poor tree alone Mister Hikaru Gosunkugi." Gosunkugi spun around, fearful that he was going to get fined for the open fire. "There are better ways to get that which you wish than torturing innocent trees."

The man was tall and skinny, looking much like Gosunkugi himself. The difference was the staff the man carried, the slitted yellow eyes, and the aura of power around the man that made the hairs on the back of Gosunkugi's neck stand on end.

"Who are you?" Gosunkugi fearfully asked, backing into the tree.

"I am Melcior," the stranger replied, bowing as one would too an equal. "And I am here to assist you in acquiring what you desire."

Gosunkugi's eyes widened, "You could help me get Akane too love me?" Gosunkugi asked hopefully.

"I can help you defeat Kuno and Ranma," Melcior smiled, knowing he had this pathetic excuse for a sorcerer hook, line, "and what's even better young one, I can get her too desire and serve you."

And sinker.

'What should I do,' Gosunkugi wondered, torn between the obvious power, but well aware of the dangers that this would involve.

Although Gosunkugi's spiritual strength was too low for him to actually use magic, that didn't mean that he was lacking in knowledge of the occult or metaphysical matters. He had read many books, most warned of accepting power from other worldly strangers.

"Why should I trust you," asked the thin boy in a hesitant tone, he really didn't want to anger this powerful being before him.

"If you would quit cowering," Melcior replied, narrowing his eyes, face drawing tight in obvious displeasure. The air around the man seemed to throb with barely controlled energy. "You do not need to trust me right now, I have been sent to assist you because our goals are the same and we see you as a valuable ally. If you will work with me trust will come in time. My masters are very generous and you show much promise."

"What is it you offer me?" Gosunkugi asked, stepping forwards and looking closer at the strange man.

"Power to allow you to defeat Ranma and Kuno," The strange man lifted his hand pointing it at the tree Gosunkugi had been hammering into. A moment later a sickly green ray rushed from his hand slamming into the tree. "Power to give you that which you desire."

Gosunkugi stared in fear at the tree as it shriveled up, the trunk rotting as the limbs twisted. Gosunkugi could have sworn he heard the tree crying in pain as red sap began to escape from the trunk itself.

"I can make you the most powerful person in Tokyo." Melkior declared, throwing his arms wide. The young boy could smell the ozone in the air as small lightning bolts crawled over the sorcerer's arms and body.

"Can I think about it for a while?" Asked the pale young man.

Melkior frowned, but nodded. "Very well, take what time you need, but do not take too long for offers such as this never come more than once to any one person."

Gosunkugi nodded as the stranger turned around and walked towards the tree line, a red and orange portal opened up as Melkior approached.

"When you decide, return to this spot and call for me. I shall give you a week before my generous offer expires." With that said, Melkior stepped through the glowing portal.

The shimmering rift stayed open for a few seconds before closing, leaving nothing more than the smell of ozone in the air.

Gosunkugi took this opportunity to finally realize that he had just faced down an individual more powerful than Kuno, practically said no and was still alive. As a way of congratulating himself for his bravery in the face of such destructive power, the young man fainted.

-Rooftops of Nerima-

Ranma sighed, tensing up as he felt Shampoo's arms closing around him. He had really hoped to avoid her this time around, or at least to escape her affections.

The pigtailed martial artist remained still as Shampoo's hand began to roam over his chest. The busty Amazon only took his non-response as incentive to continue.

Cologne could see Ranma was getting more and more irritated by her great granddaughter's physical invasion of his space. She internally sighed to herself while keeping a neutral expression.

She wished that she had made it clearer to Shampoo that Ranma wasn't like most other males. He didn't fall into the usual stereotypical category for men that most Amazons believed. If he had then one of the dozens of things, which they had tried, would have succeeded in ensnaring son-in-law.

"Shampoo, release him and cease these antics, they bring shame on our bloodline and to all Amazons seeing you throw yourself at this man." The matriarch criticized the young Amazon in Mandarin.

"Aiyah, Sorry Great-Grandmother, it was not my intention, but isn't this how a man is taken, by overwhelming his head with the emotion of lust?" Shampoo asked, releasing her grasp on the pigtailed boy, and moving to stand a more acceptable distance beside him.

"Well look at the time I've got to be getting home." Ranma stated, glancing at his wrist and the non-existent watch.

Cologne's eyes narrowed at the ring on Ranma's finger. "Of course son-in-law, do not fret we will be seeing you again, of that I am sure."

The matriarch began cackling, sending a shiver up both Shampoo and Ranma's spines.

Ranma leapt off the roof onto the ground, touching down lightly before leaping away again. Soon he was gone, hidden by buildings and the growing night.

-Woods somewhere in Europe-

"NOOOO," Ryoga cried, trying to sit up and fight the hands. He wasn't sure what this stranger was, but he had heard plenty from campfire tales through his troubles that he was pretty sure who this was.

"Do not struggle child, you will enjoy this." The man replied, unknowingly proving Ryoga's assumptions true. Ryoga felt the European's cool breath upon his neck.

"Don't touch me you pervert," the fanged boy cried, anger giving him strength to punch the count in the face. 'I knew he was a gay pedophile, who else would dress like that.' Ryoga thought, filling himself with righteous anger.

"Impudent wretch," Vladimir shouted, backhanding his prey.

Ryoga could feel his brain rolling around his skull. He could barely cling to consciousness, but refused to give in to this hideous beast, who knows what would happen to him if he passed out.

"Leave him alone," a deep growling voice echoed around them, causing Ryoga to look past the European pervert, and Vladimir to spin around.

'Who could have approached without me hearing it?' The count thought, he was in no mood to fight with a rival at this time.

Before the count stood an individual most would choose not to run into on a crowded street in the middle of the day let alone in a dark alley.

He easily stood six foot nine, with arms thicker than a large man's leg. His muscles ran along his body like steel ropes. From the waist up he was bare, revealing a much-scarred chest; below his waist he wore pants seemingly made from furs and hides of different animals. His face was unremarkable, neither handsome nor ugly, the man's black hair matted down with sweat against his skull.

The count marveled a second, he could tell that this man was not one of the kindred, his heart beat too loudly for even one drunk on blood. A magnificent spectacle, this one burnt with energy as bright as the young man lying on the ground.

"Leave this place bloodsucker," the big man's voice boomed out.

"Run," Ryoga said as loudly as he could, "he's stronger than he looks."

Vladimir laughed out loud hearing the young boy's words. "Yes run while you can and perhaps he will fill me enough that I won't come for you too." The count laughed, when he was done with the boy he would track this one down too. He would feed well tonight indeed.

"I am here for the boy, move or die." Stated the large man, almost as an after thought he added, "I would prefer you died personally, but it is up too you."

The count began too laugh, "This is the single best life of my unlife, I can't believe you know what I am, yet you still continue to threaten me. Priceless."

"Last chance," the man stated emotionlessly, flexing his muscles, making them ripple across his half naked body.

"What is your name stranger, you have amused me and I will see you properly buried." The vampire bowed graciously.

"I am Kellrak," stated the man, "and now you will die."

"I am Vladimir Vo…" the count was cut off as the large man charged him.

For such a large man he was even faster than the boy. Vladimir barely had time to dodge as a fist larger than the count's head passed by.

Stepping past Kellrak's fist, the count backhanded the large man with a goodly amount of his strength.

When the large man's head merely jerked backwards, rather than being torn off the count was so surprised, he didn't see the big man's fist coming for him.

Flying back into a tree one thought passed through the vampire's head, 'he's much stronger than I thought.' Slamming into the tree he groaned in pain, at least 3 of his ribs were broken and would take more than a day to heal.

Kellrak didn't give the bloodsucker a chance to recover, moving forwards towards the downed creature, cocking his fist back to deal another punch.

Vladimir charged forwards, using all his considerable strength, he tackled the giant with enough force to knock over a tree.

Moving backwards slightly Kellrak smiled down at the smaller man's back, his red eyes burning brightly.

"Fight little bloodsucker, fight for your life."

Reaching down to grab the vampire's waist, he lifted up the smaller man with ease before slamming the count into the ground.

Unable to fee himself from Kellrak's grip the count responded by raking his hands across the man's chest. Nails as hard as steel bit into flesh, taking out small strips as Vladimir frantically clawed at the larger man.

The large man ignored the count's frenzied clawing, lifting up the vampire, Kellrak slammed the creature into the ground again, creating a small crater around him. Grabbing the dazed vampire by his legs the large man began slamming Vladimir's face into a tree.

Vladimir felt his nose shatter against the tree trunk, through the ringing in his head he could hear the large man laughing like a maniac.

Throwing the vampire across the clearing Kellrak turned and stalked towards the little man.

"Fight me little bloodsucker, lay down and I will destroy you." The juggernaut of a man yelled. "Blood for the Blood god."

Looking at his opponent, the vampire felt real fear for the first time in a lifetime.

"You're not human." The vampire accused his opponent.

"Did I ever say I was?" Shot back Kellrak, reaching down and picking up the nobleman.

Gripping the nobleman's head with one hand and the count's body with the other he began pulling. The count began to scream as he felt the strain in his neck increasing, and grabbed Kellrak's arms with his hands, struggling in vain against the growing tension. The muscles in Kellrak's back flexed as he pulled the count's head off. A sickening pop sounded as the vampire's head popped off.

"Blood for the blood god, Skulls for Khorne." Kellrak stated, turning around and walking towards the boy.

"I am here to help you." The big man stated voice thick with emotion and a smile across his bloody face as he reached down and picked up the little Asian.

"Help me with what?" Ryoga asked. He felt much better as soon the large man laid those huge hands upon him. The daze in his head began to fade and he began to think clearly again.

Ryoga felt anger welling within him, what right did this person have to come and interfere in his fight. How dare he.

Turning over the fanged boy punched the man carrying him in the face with as much force as he could.

Glancing down at the burden on his shoulder, seeming to have ignored the punch the big man smiled. "Little boy, my name is Kellrak and you aren't ready not yet, but you will be."

"Will be for what?" Ryoga asked, not realizing the man was now speaking to him in fluent Japanese.

"Revenge." The big man stated as he walked off into the wood leaving the clearing and body behind Ryoga over his shoulder with the young boy's pack in one hand.

"Ranma this is all your fault." Yelled Ryoga into the night, eliciting loud laughter to burst out from Kellrak after his statement.

-Tokyo, Nerima Ward, Park-

Gosunkugi woke up and looked around the clearing, his torches had burnt down to embers, thankfully they hadn't tipped over and started a fire.

The sickly looking boy sighed in relief, had a fire started he would have been facing serious jail time.

Japan, and even more so Tokyo, was a place where a large number of people had crammed into a very small space. Living very close to one another in building that were at one time and still in some places were nothing more than paper and wood. As such fear of fire was a very real thought on peoples minds. Fire regulations were very strict throughout Tokyo and an unattended fire that caused damage accidentally was a criminal offence.

Looking at his pocket watch, Gosunkugi realized it was beginning to get late. Picking up a shovel he had nearby he dug a small hole and poured the embers into it. Then he began putting dirt on the embers, not using water so as not to send up any telltale smoke that would have clued people in to his activities.

Gosunkugi went around the clearing gathering up his mystical supplies. All in all it was a good day, he performed some cleansing rituals, he didn't have school, he cursed Ranma Saotome and Tatewaki Kuno, he met with a daemon sent by a dark god promising power and most likely damnation, he didn't get caught by the police during his nap, he…

Gosunkugi froze, dropping all his supplies on the ground. 'I met with a demon sent by a dark god promising power and most likely power.' The thin boy repeated to himself several times, going even paler if that was possible.

He thought about what was offered too him. Kuno was a pompous ass that wouldn't allow any sign of greatness in anybody but himself. He had tortured Furninkan High and Nerima elementary for years.

Gosunkugi was a class below Kuno as such he didn't know the full story, but he had overheard it from another person in Kuno's grade. One day Kuno had just come to class with a boken. He had assaulted another student who had made fun of him over something. Shocked the teacher took Tatewaki to his father for discipline. The teacher had come back dressed in a suit of ceremonial Great Armour and began teaching the class the best way to serve the Emperor.

Kuno had only gotten worse from that point on. Gosunkugi had heard that the young boy's father was as much of a bully if not worse. Strangely enough, the day that Kuno's class started at Furinkan, principal Kuno had up and vanished to Hawaii.

The celebration had lasted for almost a week and had spanned every grade. Teachers and students standing side by side as the girls happily dawned the school's fuku, removing their kimonos and wooden sandals. The boys were even thankful for the boring black school uniform after the pieces of armour they had been wearing before hand. The teachers themselves threw off their Shinto robes and happily wore suits and ties.

Furinkan never really had complaints from the students about the uniform code afterwards. Violations of the uniform code were unheard of, at least until Ranma came along.

He had been in the school for a single day and already rumours and shockwaves had spread throughout the school. Somehow he had won Akane Tendo, the most desirable girl in school as a fiancée, he had beaten Kuno, and he disobeyed the dress code. Although all things considered the last was a relatively minor point.

Gosunkugi hadn't actually talked with or met Ranma yet, nor had he even really seen much of the martial artist as he had taken off with Akane after only a couple of days of school. The rumours and speculations ran overtime, from they ran way forever too they eloped too even wilder and crazier theories.

Gosunkugi didn't really have anything against Ranma beyond the fact he was with Akane, the only girl who had ever given him any kind words. He knew the only way to defeat Saotome would be to accept the daemon's offer.

One thing was for sure, accepting the offer would be a mistake. It's not that he doubted the daemon would keep its promise, far from it. The daemon would uphold its end of any bargain that was made too the letter, but not the intent of the contract.

Gosunkugi realized that now power came without its price. This was especially true with magic. The thin boy was tempted; extremely tempted to accept the offer, but he knew that as with all things in his life it would turn on him.

Hiding his supplies in a tree hollow, the sickly looking boy sighed and walked towards his house.

-Rooftops of Nerima-

'Where could he be?' Akane though worriedly, she had been searching for Ranma for what seemed like hours, yet she hadn't found him yet.

"Ranma where are you?" She asked no one in particular, leaping down to the street. She didn't know why she had come here, but it had just seemed right to her.

Akane just stood there for a moment, staring at an empty building. For a moment she just stared at it, not understanding what had brought her here. Looking at the street address something clicked in her mind. This was the place where the cat café would be when Cologne finally arrived.

Ranma had spent much of his time here and at Uchan's, two places that didn't exist yet, and depending on the course of events may never exist. So much rested on their actions.

"We could leave tomorrow and never look back. They'd never find us, Loki-sama would keep us safe, we could be together with none of them interfering." Akane spoke aloud, sharing her thoughts with the world.

"They'd never take you from me, never," fire entered her voice as Akane's ring burned brighter.

"I won't let anyone take you from me." She promised the world.

"You shouldn't make declarations that are so hard to fulfill." A cold voice warned the young woman.

Akane spun around in a fighting stance, "who is there?" she asked, looking around the empty street.

Flattening her back to the wall, Akane looked up and down the street, but she couldn't see anyone. Akane took a few steps towards the middle of the street before leaping up onto the roof of a nearby building.

Surveying the area, Akane still couldn't see anybody, but she knew she had heard a voice.

Looking around one last time and still not catching sight of whomever it was speaking, the dark haired girl headed off towards the dojo. She was worried about Ranma, but knew he was ok and would come back to the dojo eventually.

Deep inside her Akane knew that should something ever happen to her pigtailed fiancé she would instinctively know.

Leaping back towards the dojo, Akane put the growing feeling of unease behind her. She trusted her fiancé and would continue to trust him; she wouldn't make the same mistake this life.

As she began running back towards the dojo, she thought about what Ranma might be doing. She trusted him not to be doing anything improper, but things always did tend to spiral out of control and even the laws of probability seemed to be bent by her once reluctant fiancé.

Without even knowing it Akane changed direction, heading away from the Tendo Dojo and towards the spot where Uchan's would someday be.

-Somewhere else-

"Her own insecurities will prove to be her undoing." Stated the hooded figure, turning to face its partner.

"Some things are harder to unlearn than others, even death can't change that." The armoured figure smirked, "I know that better than most," The armoured figure turned its gaze towards its companion, "as should you."

"Death and rebirth are part of the cycle, it changes little." The armoured figure leaned back on its throne. "I would have expected you too be in a better mood. After all it would appear that Tzeencth's has been denied his chance. Who have expected that a sickly little boy like Gosunkugi who even tries his hand at magic would be the only one who refused."

"True, poor Kodachi, she doesn't know what she is getting herself into." The cloaked figure remarked, eliciting a glare from the figure's armoured companion.

"You're not going soft on me are you dear ally?" The question was asked in a jovial tone, but contained a very blatant underlying threat.

"Of course not," snapped the cloaked one, gliding fluidly over too the armoured figure's throne. "We're in this till the end now, there is no turning back now. I'm actually relieved that only two of the four are in the game."

"We will continue sticking to the plan as best we can. As long as we can continue unnoticed for just a while longer then everything will be alright."

"Indeed."

-End of Chapter 20, TBC-

AN: Well that's another chapter, coming straight from my twisted mind, of the story done.

Well it's been almost a year since I updated, something I am not pleased about. Despite my best intentions I was unable to complete this chapter until now. Unfortunately I hit writer's block for part of the time and just didn't know where to go with the story. Other times I just had other things I had to do. My apologies, and while I can't promise it won't happen again, I will finish this story eventually.

I have now written 20 chapters and almost 100,000 words. The average novel is 80,000 words. When I started out I wanted to do a 20-chapter story that would last 100,000 words. To hit the goal I set for myself at the beginning I had to average 5,000 words a chapter, not easy when half your chapters are only 2,000 - 4,000 words long. To set myself a good point I will now be making my chapters about 5,000 words long as a general rule.

I never expected the story to be as long as it is going to be, but I really don't have much of a choice. One of the problems I have with stories is how short scenes are, all that happens is an action that relates to the plot, there are no details that help immerse you into the story.

This chapter is about 10,000 words long, and that is just a little tedious, it is much easier to do shorter chapters and tie several of them in together. One such thing I could have done was make a chapter for each of the chaos gods and their respective Ranma character. Perhaps I will go back after I finish the story and redo this, probably not.

The four gods of chaos are seen as extremely evil entities. Khorne is the blood god, lord of slaughter chose Ryoga. Slaanesh is the dark prince, prince of all dark and unholy pleasures she/he chose Kodachi, Tzeentch is known as the changer of the ways, master of dark magic and mutation, he chose Gosunkugi.

The Count is based off of the vampires in the Warhammer world also, I thought about what type of vampire I wished to insert, it came down too a choice between a Warhammer Vampire Count, or a Vampire from the World of Darkness, created by White Wolf. In the end I decided that I liked Warhammer's variety more than I did White Wolf.

As for Ryoga not knowing what the vampire really was, well keep in mind Ryoga, like Ranma has been on the road since he was young, as such he might not know quite the same cultural stories as a normal person. Also Ryoga has been known to jump to rather wild conclusions, much like the rest of the cast.

For an excellent story based around the Warhammer 40K universe, I would recommend the Ranma ½ fanfic, _The Primarch Of Chaos_, it is the best WH 40K fanfic I have found that relates to the Ranma ½ universe, if anyone knows of others I would love to read them.

The four gods of chaos and everything from the Warhammer universe are property of Games Workshop and I in no way claim ownership nor am I making any money off of this. On a side note I started up a Battle Fleet Gothic Necron fleet and am very happy with it so far. My only regret is that there aren't enough people who play the game for my tastes.

If anyone has any comments on the story I would love to hear about them, advice and compliments are also welcome. In case anyone wonders, I read all the reviews I get about the story and if requested I am more than willing to respond or communicate with anyone so interested. If you do send me an e-mail to me please put 'one last chance' or 'fan fiction' in the title if you want me to read it promptly otherwise I might accidentally skip over it.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you want to contact me and have me respond, E-mail me at and I'll try to get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Thanks.

-Rhuobhe26


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